Pizza My Heart (2005 TV Movie) User Reviews

The Vidiot Reviews...

[capone666 · 6/10 · 20 November 2018]

Pizza My Heart

While it's not widely known, Christopher Columbus' voyage to America was initially a pizza delivery.

And while that factoid has been lost to history, this comedy assures America's obsession with pizza hasn't.

In fair Verona, New Jersey is where we lay our scene: two families, The Prestolanis (Michael Badalucco, Natalija Nogulich) and The Montebellos (Dan Hedaya, Gina Hecht), war with each other over who sells the best pie in town. But their long-standing feud is about to be turned on its head when Gina (Shiri Appleby) falls in love with her sworn enemy Joe. (Eyal Podell). The lovers must now bring peace to their pizzerias.

ABC Family's modern retelling of Shakespeare's tragedy, this 2005 movie-of-the-week is a goofy but guilty pleasure that tones down the calamity of the play and gives way to zaniness.

Lastly, when ordering from a Romeo and Juliet themed pizzeria, get them to hold the poison. Yellow Light

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Perfect for its venue

[HallmarkMovieBuff · 24 July 2005]

I don't usually take time to watch TV movies with commercials, but this was on at a good time, featured actors I like, and had a catchy title. Never mind that this story has been made many times over (Romeo & Juliet, if you didn't already know)...familiarity with the plot in this case adds to its charm, even though one knows in advance that there will be few, if any, surprises.

In this version, competing restaurants/recipes provide fuel for the families' feud, adding a new twist to an old tale. Although I knew half way through how the feud would resolve from the pizza perspective (one knows from the outset how the romance will resolve), I must admit without giving anything away that I had not foretold the catalyst, despite several clues.

One thing that not all R&J adaptations have is a romantic subplot in addition to the main one; but the one here was just as touching, if not more so, due perhaps to its unexpectedness, than the main one. I'm a sucker for a warm-hearted love story, especially when presented in the context of strong, close-knit families; and these two love stories together had me making my way to the kitchen for tissues more than once toward the end.

I rate this movie based on its context in addition to traditional factors; thus, for a TV movie, it scores well in my book.

Pizza My Heart

[random_avenger · 3/10 · 15 August 2010]

In a modern variation of Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet, the old tale of forbidden love is set in present day Verona, New Jersey where two Italian-American families, the Montebellos and the Prestolanis, run rivaling pizzerias and hold a grudge against each other. Naturally Joe, the son of the Montebellos (Eyal Podell), meets Gina, the daughter of the Prestolanis (Shiri Appleby), and warm feelings develop between them. In addition to the long-running mutual hatred between their families, Joe and Gina's romance is also hindered by their sense of responsibility to their folks: both are being pressured for pre-set careers despite longing to see more in life.

I guess you shouldn't expect much from a made-for-TV rom-com drama; but still, would just a hint of fresh ideas be too much to ask? The story advances exactly, and I mean exactly, as can be predicted right from the beginning. I actually suspected the laughably clichéd plot might be some kind of sarcastic parody of all the lame romance flicks that get churned out each year, but no, there's nothing to suggest that we aren't supposed to take it all at face value.

Besides the dull story, the other aspects don't provide much to enjoy either, even if technically the movie is not totally incompetent. The music further adds to the sea of clichés and the actors are just pretty faces with little charisma. The only exception would be the sturdy Michael Badalucco as Gina's father, but he isn't really given much decent material to work with, so it is difficult to find any reason to recommend Pizza My Heart to anyone but the biggest and most undemanding romance fans. All those tasty pizzas got me really hungry though; I guess that's a positive reaction.

very bad flick

[bylexxx · 2/10 · 1 February 2006]

I got sick watching this movie(and I like pizza). The storyline isn't that bad, but the idea of two families competing over pizza is ridiculous. What is so important in the restaurant industry? Especially in some Italian families who make pizzas(how original). I generally don't like romance comedies, but this one beats them all(except Maid in Manhattan). The acting , the directing and all that represents cinematographic work is quite mediocre, but the biggest problem remains the subject of this movie.Don't watch it unless you want to torture yourself or you are more twisted like the ones who enjoy something like Cannibal Holocaust and really like idiotic romances. Plus I think this whole movie is more offending to the Italian people than any gangster flick.

A slice of perfection!

[Tenchi64589 · 10/10 · 24 July 2005]

I'm a sucker for these types of movies; so to me, this modern take on Romeo and Juliet was an absolute joy to watch.

It's not only a perfect romantic movie, but there are some elements of comedy within it. (Take for instance, the mice being released in the Montebello's restaurant.) The characters themselves were very believable... I even started to FEEL the resentment of the two families! My only regret has to do with the people that didn't watch this... I say to them one of two things: for the uncultured, grow up; and to the ones that didn't get it, stop over-analyzing everything and enjoy the movie.

10/10

Poorly made and a shameless ripoff of a better film

[badscene · 2/10 · 27 December 2020]

The plot of this film is literally copy and pasted from a better film, 1995's "Love is All There Is" a retelling of Romeo and Juliet about two families that own rivaling Italian restaurants and starring Lanie Kazan and a young Angelina Jolie as the Juliet character.

This was cheesy, poorly written and acted, but entertaining if you're looking for a background watch while you cook dinner or something. Still, I couldn't get past the Conceptual plagiarism. I mean, how hard is it to come up with your own ideas, especially in the framework of a retelling.

overall a good T.V made movie

[livelife182 · 8/10 · 24 July 2005]

This movie was not the worst movie of all time. It was a movie that at the end I wasn't sure whether I loved it or hated it. I have decided I loved it. It was a T.V movie so parts of it were cheesy but the plot was good, and it kept moving. It wasn't slow and most of the dialogue was clever. The acting was great. I think the actors portrayed the characters quite well. The downside to the movie was that it was very predictable. I didn't think it was necessarily a bad thing because it was a modern day Romeo and Juliet. There were some unexpected twists to the movie which kept it interesting and kept you guessing. Overall this was a great T.V-made movie.

Delightful and adorbs retelling of "Romeo and Juliet"

[mikemdp · 8/10 · 27 October 2019]

This unrelentingly adorbs retelling of "Romeo and Juliet" imagines Shakespeare's play as a story of two Italian-American families with competing pizza places.

The Prestolanis and the Montebellos of Verona, N.J. (wink, wink), whose pizza places are inexplicably side by side and separated by a tall, brick wall like in "The Fantasticks," have hated each other's guts for centuries.

One family makes a pizza known for its wonderful cheese combination, the other for its delicious sauce.

When a Frenchman (!) comes to town looking to franchise a pizza place for no good reason other than it services the plot, Joe (Romeo) Montebello and Gina (Juliet) Prestolani must overcome their relatives' feud to save the family businesses and their star-crossed romance, too.

Populated with scenery-chewing character actors famous for portraying bombastic Italians, including Michael Badalucco (best known as lawyer Jimmy Berlutti in TV's "The Practice") and perpetually flustered Dan Hedaya (Carla's husband on "Cheers" and "The Tortellis"), the stupidly titled "Pizza My Heart" is actually quite delightful.

The blend of romance, genuine comedy, and Shakespeare references so subtle they might even get past your high school English teacher really, really works for some crazy reason.

I'm a sap for "Romeo and Juliet" adaptations, whether it's the '60s musical "West Side Story," '80s grindhouse sleaze "China Girl," the Jet Li chopsocky actioner "Romeo Must Die" or DTV kiddie fare "Romeo and Juliet: Sealed with a Kiss," the latter of which tells the story with, not kidding, animated sea lions.

This one's more like the sea lions one than Abel Ferrara's grim "China Girl," in that it foregoes the "tragedy" part of Shakespeare's tragedy and focuses more on a "love conquers all" theme that would have made the Bard throw the heck up, but is totally befitting of ABC Family, on which "Pizza My Heart" premiered about a decade ago.

And as such, it's a lovely way to spend an evening with your spouse.

Great, poignant film.

[wkozak221 · 10/10 · 14 October 2018]

I watched this when it first came out out. It was funny. Especially, when the principals are running around in secret. It still holds up very well. Dan is funny. However, 2 minuses: 1. Carlo IMO is a twit. 2. 2. Why do the 2 dad's have to keep arguing at the end?

Pizza My Heart

[mpgibu · 9/10 · 25 July 2005]

The acting by all cast members was superb. Shiri Appleby is absolutely beautiful. She's one of those girls next door who you'd love to settle down with and get married to one day. While the plot was quite predictable (possibly a result of it being an adaptation of Romeo and Juliet) i still found myself interested throughout the movie. The writing was fresh and barely cliché. And by the end of the movie i did find myself with the strangest craving for good pizza (though it is kinda hard to find the authentic stuff here in Hawaii). All in all, definitely a recommended movie if you're into the whole romantic comedy thing.

My kind of movie!

[mj_igarashi · 9/10 · 4 August 2005]

I enjoyed this fun, "happily ever after" movie. It is a Romeo and Juliet spin off, fortunately without the tragedy at the end! The characters were pleasant and intelligent, and easily engage the viewer from the beginning. Gina and Joe definitely have chemistry! I loved Gina's stylish and feminine wardrobe, by the way. The first 2/3 of the movie was believable and funny...*SPOILER* but unfortunately, like so many movies seem to do, it kind of lost it's "believability" towards the end. It was as if the writers had to wrap up the story somehow, and weren't sure how to end it. If your home/business was on fire, would you not run away and call 911? Who would sit up in a tree (that logically should have also caught on fire)? And why would the parents, who have worked hard their entire lives for their restaurants, suddenly turn everything over to Joe and Gina when they want to take over? Overall, though, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, and recommend it to anyone looking for a clean, lighthearted romantic comedy!!

Cute Movie

[Not_Deceived · 8/10 · 31 July 2005]

I enjoyed this movie. It was nice to see a movie about two people falling in love without crude, sexually explicit jokes, or pre-marital sex. However, I do have a couple of complaints on two matters towards the end of the movie: Do the writers really think the audience would believe that such a fire that destroyed both family restaurants would spare the tree that Gina and Joe sat in as both restaurants burned to the ground? In reality, the tree would've caught fire and burned to the ground as well! Also, after both families return to see their restaurants burned to the ground, and relieved and rejoicing that Gina and Joe are alive and didn't perish in the fire, is the audience to really believe that these two young kids can just waltz in and tell their parents that they (Gina and Joe) have decided to merge both restaurants without any objections from the parents, who have been enemies for how many years? To just come in a take over? It's as if the writers executed a pretty decent script for most of the movie, then threw the ending together.

Other than that, a cute movie. The acting's decent, and the actors who played Gina and Joe looked really cute together.