Product: Under the Tuscan Sun (2003)
Rating: 4.0
Getting Bad Rap, Good Film
I believe this film was entertaining but not for everyone. There was not so much a plot as there was an internal journey that was reflected in her taking the journey to Italy and making changes in her life. It is more a story of character development that takes place on an adventure.As for all the comments regarding political correctness with the "token" Asian best friend, let me tell you...that is more than a bit insulting. Granted, Hollywood has done that with certain minorities before, but this best friend hardly filled any stereotype. And in fact, the reason Hollywood places those "token" minorities in is because it makes the screen more INTERESTING and DIVERSE! Not to mention REALISTIC! The entirety of America is not all white, and sometimes putting a person of color in a film does add some spark and dimension to the film.Not to mention, this particular actress held her own, exuded her own personality altogether, and made the film better.As for taking liberties with the book...the beginning of the movie admits to fabricating some of the information. And if you want to talk about taking liberties with a translation from book to film, take a look at the film Chocolat.