Under the Tuscan Sun (2003) User Reviews

Attractive!

[zfiany · 6/10 · 18 November 2009]

It's a story about how people who want things badly rush themselves into experiences that are worse than their previous ones. It's a good movie with several deep messages. The movie also has a certain atmosphere that makes you feel as if you are in Tuscan on a trip yourself. I have to disagree with the view that says you need to be in love to enjoy the movie. All what you need is some depth and you will definitely relate to the protagonist. She happens to be healing from a failing marriage but you can relate to her story if you are dealing with any kind of problems in your life.

There is one specific part of the movie which I truly like is the one where she defends the love story of a young couple though she was hurt. This shows that even though she failed she didn't cease to believe in love. She succeeded in going out of the egocentricity of a person who usually hates good for people if his life is not working successfully.

Sappy and unrealistic, but still strangely charming...

[jluis1984 · 7/10 · 22 January 2007]

Poet and writer Frances Mayes became a household name when in 1996 she published "Under the Tuscan Sun", a book where she detailed how she and her new lover bought and renovated an abandoned villa in Tuscany, Italy. With her stylish prose, she made the book something more than a mere diary of the renovation and turned into a captivating chronicle of her trips through Italy and her familiarization with the country's rich culture. The book's detailed account of Mayes' trips attracted director Audrey Wells, who used the book's story of the renovation of an Italian villa as a basis for this charming romantic comedy set in Tuscany and starring Diane Lane.

Frances (Diane Lane) is a writer in her mid-30s currently suffering writer's block, but this is the lesser of her problems, as her husband suddenly decides to divorce her and as a result of legal issues, he keeps their house. Without a place to call home, Frances enters a state of depression, but her friend Patti (Sandra Oh) has a solution. Since Patti (who is a lesbian) has become pregnant, she and her partner offer Frances their tickets to Italy and convince her to take a holiday. While traveling through Tuscanny with the tour, Frances finds an abandoned villa for sale, and impulsively (and thanks to a series of consequences), she decides to buy it. "Under the Tuscan Sun" details France's efforts to renovate the villa and her life at the same time, as well as her encounters with many interesting characters from the beautiful Italian region.

Well, it is safe to point out that other than the tale of the renovation of an old house, Audrey Well's adaptation of the story has little to no resemblance to the book's plot. However, the way Wells mixes Mayes' Italian adventure with her character's own tribulations is almost perfect. True, the movie's plot is a bit typical and filled with some of the most common clichés in the romantic comedy genre, but it also offers some really nice (and unexpected) twists to the formula. While not exactly the detailed travelogue that Mayes' book is, this version of "Under the Tuscan Sun" really captures the magic of the Italian region and accurately shows off bits of the country's culture despite the funny use of classic stereotypes.

Director Audrey Wells takes a straight forward approach to her story, but wisely, takes full advantage of the location's awesome landscapes and the enormous talent of cinematographer Geoffrey Simpson. Together, Simpson and Wells create beautiful vistas of Italy's famous countryside that often mimic in a cleverly fashion some very well-known paintings of the same locations. The film's cinematography is definitely the movie's main asset, but it's not the only good thing in the film. While in terms of style Wells follows the romantic comedy formula somewhat to the letter, the movie is filled with a very human touch that most movies of this genre lack.

Diane Lane is simply perfect as the movie's main character, as while the role may be a bit typical, she truly added her talents to the part and made Frances a very real and likable woman. Sandra Oh is good as Frances' best friend Patti, although really less convincing than Lane. Vincent Riotta is the film's highlight, as the helpful Mr. Martini who also gives two or three lessons to the stranger in a strange land. Lindsay Duncan appears as the strange Katherine, and plays an over-the-top character with dignity and charm. Overall the rest of the cast was very good, with everyone being perfect to the part although nothing really special. By the way, watch out for a small appearance of legendary director Mario Monicelli in a small role.

It's impossible to compare the film to the book as they are both very different beasts, with very little in common; so fans of the book won't find a faithful adaptation despite the gorgeous images of Italy. As a film, "Under the Tuscan Sun" is a very effective melodrama, as while it's certainly sappy and silly at times, it offers a breath of fresh air when compared to other similar films. True, it's story may not be the most original one, but the way it's executed it's strangely charming, as if the beautiful cinematography and witty script were able to cast a magic spell on the viewers and simply captivate with their simple beauty.

It's easy to dismiss "Under the Tuscan Sun" as another silly romantic comedy filled with typical clichés and sappy situations; but while those descriptions often prove true to this film, there is something else, something more that this movie offers that makes it special, and a truly different experience to those used to watch the same plots in melodramas over and over. "Under the Tuscan Sun" may not be true to its source book, but it uses it cleverly to tells a really charming story. 7/10

A stroll down a Tuscan Lane

[=G= · 7/10 · 4 February 2004]

In "Under the Tuscan Sun", a recently divorced American writer/critic (Lane) ventures to Italy where she sets about putting the pieces of her shattered life back together in the rustic, bucolic, scenic countryside of Tuscany. Lane registers a fine performance in this lighthearted drama spritzed with humor and romance which is as lovely as it is clumsy. Obvious in its attempts to tug at the heart-strings of romantics with all the expected Italian stereotypes and cliches, this flick received mixed reviews and will resonate most with more mature sentimentalists. Those who enjoy this film may want to check out V. Redgrave in "A Month by the Lake" (1995). (B)

Gorgeous Eye Candy

[PrairieCal · 15 February 2004]

I love this movie. I don't care if it was a "chic flick" or what. Whatever, it was so breathtakingly beautiful that anyone should be entranced by it's sheer visual assault on the senses. When you add great performances by a fine cast, and an interesting story, you can't loose. Who wouldn't love to escape for an hour or so to the Italian Sun? Even the ending was realistic.

This is the second movie I've seen lately that took place in a beautiful countryside Italian Villa. The other, "My House in Umbria" was equally eye catching and enjoyable.

But I think I've reached the point of satiation. If I have to see one more movie where the lead actress has nothing to do but make friends, remodel her gorgeous Tuscan Villa, eat gourmet food on her sunny patio in the garden, have no money worries, and not work, I think I might snap. I pray daily that Diane Lane and Maggie Smith will one day be slinging hash in a Barstow truckstop and experience the real world.

"Someday You'll Be Happy Again"

[sddavis63 · 7/10 · 14 May 2009]

Admittedly, I was surprised. This isn't the type of movie that normally appeals to me, and yet I was really quite taken with it on a number of counts. It could be described as a very gentle movie (even mildly spiritual in some ways) full of sage advice about life and how to handle the disappointments that naturally appear, and - being somewhat stereotypically Italian in its presentation - it has a lot about love and romance and flirtatiousness in it. It even packs a bit of humour. Not a typical guy's movie, but still very pleasant viewing. What I particularly liked was the premise that essentially started the whole thing off. Frances (in a great performance by Diane Lane) discovers that her husband is having an affair, and they end up divorced - and, she being the primary bread winner - he gets the house and alimony. The lesson? When your life falls apart, move on to something completely different and start picking up the pieces. Frances buys a villa in Tuscany and restarts her life, with us watching. Her problems aren't solved. She seems to think that everything revolves around finding a man and romance, but - as her friend Martini points out near the end of the movie - she ends up with everything she wanted - just not in the way she expected to get it.

At times, it's a bit slow-paced, and it's not "exciting" in the way we think of the word, but it's got a quality that draws you into it. As far as the story is concerned, my only quibble might be the introduction of the character of "Ed" right at the end of the movie. Everything to that point had led to the understanding that Frances didn't need romance to be fulfilled; she had found her fulfillment with the people she had assembled around her, who had become a surrogate family. I suppose it's nice that she found someone to love, but the movie on the whole would have been more satisfying if it had ended with the gathering at the dinner table with all her friends - without Ed! That was an unsatisfying intrusion into an otherwise satisfying story. 7/10

Italian for beginners...

[jotix100 · 7/10 · 9 November 2003]

Something very strange happened on the way to make this film. It appears as though director and adapter, Audrey Wells, threw the original text away only to create her own trip to Tuscany. With the help of her gorgeous star, Ms. Wells found backing for this pastiche she ended up presenting to us, which bears almost no resemblance to the original book by Frances Mayes.

This is a movie full of cliches: The lonely and naive American tourist that would stay in Italy, the Latin lover, the good lesbian friend, and last, but not least, the eccentric Brit living in the small town!

The best thing this film offers is the radiant Diane Lane, who is just gorgeous enough to make us forget the story and what is she doing in the mess she is in. Also, Lindsay Duncan, another great British actress doing a crude interpretation of her own "La Dolce Vita" some 44 years later.

This is a typical "date film" which will be enjoyed by those people that didn't read the book.

Diane Lane is Brighter Than the Tuscan Sun

[lawprof · 9/10 · 28 September 2003]

"Under the Tuscan Sun" is a polarizing film that seems to leave viewers (and critics) either in love with a story of growth and renewal or dismissive of its line. I'm firmly in the former camp.

Based so loosely on Frances Mayes's own account of her regeneration in beautiful Italy as to carry an end credit pronouncing that substantial fictionalization replaced key true details, writer and director Audrey Wells crafted a stunning vehicle for Diane Lane whose radiance projects from the screen powerfully. And in every scene.

Diane Lane, as the changed-from-the-memoir Frances, abandons San Francisco after her never shown cad husband divorces her, getting the house she once loved. Frances is a writer and literary critic. Why does she leave S.F.? Two of her closest friends give her a ticket for a gay bus tour of Italy and she jumps off the bus to look into a ramshackle old country house up for sale. Impetuosity? Definitely. Believable? Yes, actually.

Frances' new house isn't a handyman's special, it's a contractor's assurance of food on the table for a very long time. Frances adapts to the house and the locals with remarkable aplomb. Tuscany is sunny but its light fades before Frances's challenged but resilient commitment to not just restore a house but to create a home. The two aren't the same. I'm not sure how many male directors could so well create that reality.

Director Wells tells the story from a woman's heart but with a breadth of humor and drama that should appeal to anyone who wants to believe, or needs to hope, that there really is a light at the end of the tunnel of marital infidelity and dissolution.

Supporting Diane Lane is Sandra Oh as Patti, her closest friend. In relatively short scenes, Ms. Oh displays a lively and laconic grasp not only of her friend's life but also of her own which is not, as they say today, devoid of "issues."

Lindsay Duncan is Katharine, an older woman determined to hold on to her now fading attractiveness through a blend of humor, earthiness - and alcohol. Her character may be predictable but she's also fun.

Raoul Bova has garnered some press attention as handsome Marcello, the romantically available and affluent Italian. That's a character we've seen in many, many films and Bova delivers an expectedly satisfactory but hardly deep performance.

Yes, Diane Lane is beautiful but there is much more to her acting than a shining appearance. Her facial gestures, mirroring her emotions as they shift from moment to moment, are the product of extraordinary acting ability. And her character draws a powerful portrayal.

Credit also must go to cinematographer Geoffrey Simpson. Perhaps it would be impossible for a blind camera director to turn in anything but a gorgeous visage of rural and urban Italy but Simpson did do a marvelous job of making the locales come alive.

This is a film for adults, for people who can understand pain and the search for recovery and understand the difficulty of coming back from a space that once offered the mirage of safety and security.

I loved this film.

9/10.

A Delightful Romance, With a Tour Through the Wonders of Italy and a Great Homage to the Italian Cinema

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 29 March 2005]

When the American writer and critic Francesca (Diane Lane) divorces from her husband, she becomes very depressed. Meanwhile, her lesbian friend Patti (Sandra Oh) gets pregnant and Patti and her mate decide to give their travel to Tuscan in a gay tour as a gift to Frances, to lift her moral. Once in Italy, Frances decides to spend all her savings, buying an old villa in an impulsive decision. While reforming the place, Frances finds wonderful places, friendship with the locals and love. "Under the Tuscan Sun" is a delightful romance, with a tour through the wonders of Italy and a great homage to the Italian cinema, with a reference to "La Dolce Vita" and a minor participation of Mario Monicelli. Diane Lane looks like wine, becoming more gorgeous along the years, and with a lovely face and smile. I have never had the chance to visit Italy, and after seeing the magnificent locations and the nice people of Italy, I believe most of the viewers will have the feeling of expecting to have a chance to visit such a marvelous place. I really liked this enjoyable film. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Sob o Sol da Toscana" ("Under the Tuscan Sun")

I Really Loved This Film

[luckylib14 · 8/10 · 14 May 2006]

So, I've heard this film got the beating because it wasn't like the book? Ah, well, trust me; I'm a huge book-lover (and Harry Potter fan), so I can say that if I had read the book and was an immense fan, I probably wouldn't have liked the film if it had taken the basis out of the original story. I truly sympathize with those of you who disliked this film because it did not go with the book in some way or another. ;)

Although, since I love writing myself, I have a very wonderful relationship with this film and its delicious scenery, how the characters in it build in confidence, and the whimsical things that seem to be thrown in it artfully. Yes, there are some so-called "cliches", which is a word I hate using. We use that word to describe things that happen every day in our life, things that repeat themselves in storybooks and films and are heard so often that we are likely to vomit with expectancy of it all. But the thing that hit me about this film is that a lot of things happen that you really don't expect. The coming-of-age story has been told for ages, and will be expressed forever, with all its little tidbits of similar goings-on (serious situation happens, main character finds escape, love, broken heart, confusion..etc.). I don't think an entire genre of literature can deny its existence, now, can it? :)

The acting is superb, and it has a lot of light-hearted moments that lift it up. It's basically about accepting yourself before you can truly find "Mr.Right", and realizing that you shouldn't put the blame on yourself for every single thing in your life that happens, and about taking chances because life can have pros and cons. I even think that some men would like it. This film was very inspiring to me, and although I didn't see it in theaters, I left my couch feeling very creative and content, as if I wasn't the only one who got inspiration from the little things life seems to hand out.

Meredith and Christina

[jolenekwarner · 6/10 · 29 May 2021]

If Meredith and Christina had their own movie and if it was in Tuscany.

This would be that movie.

Too Much Cheese...

[Pablo Picassimo · 5/10 · 1 November 2003]

Let's get the positives of this movie out of the way:

1. Fantastic Italian scenery: From Positano to Florence, the movie shows the audience back drops that take the breath away.

2. Diane Lane: Played very well and convincing 'Frances' character.

Beyond that, the movie is plagued with so much cheese (SPOILERS WARNING):

1. Too many coincidences: Things that happen out of no where, like the bus stopping in front of the house that Frances happened to see earlier advertised on a Real Estate ad. Or France picking up Marcello just to escape the taunting Italian men. And the coincidences continue to pile.

2. Employment: I'm not sure if I am the only person to see that none of the people actually worked in this movie, except for the Polish labor, who renovated her Frances' new (old) home. Coming out of a divorce, you'd expect Frances to have only some change in her pocket, yet she's able to feast with the rest of the characters in the movie like she was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Everyone appeared to have too much time on their hands. It all is nice to fantasize, but is highly unreal. And how about Katherine? She's probably living off the alimony from her previous divorces.

3. Clichés and Stereotypes: Hearing that this was a 'chick flick', I expect some clichés, stereotype, and most important, a happy ending. Well, this movie has plenty of them. For starters, the lesbian couple was fine, but introducing the `Gay and Away' tour bus was a little too much. Secondly, seeing both Jerzy with the cigarette in his mouth and Zbigniew with the Polish novel in *every* single shot, portrayed the insignificance of their characters. Then there is the stereotype of Italian men who are nothing but unfaithful and promiscuous. And finally, through all the hardships of seeing Frances' relationships breakdown, she finds another fellow American writer (whom she criticized when he was in high school) who happens to be touring through the Tuscan region of Italy.

To sum it up, this movie is a 5/10 on my book. Some good acting from Diane Lane and great scenery, which couldn't be saved due to hard to swallow reality checks.

Lovely movie

[breedingnd1 · 9/10 · 7 December 2005]

This movie is wonderfully romantic. It is sweetly written and just a good girl movie. Any woman who has had any sadness in her life and needs a new start will appreciate this movie. The views are incredibly and makes you want to fly to Tuscany and live there forever! The characters are those that make you fall in love and you will relive moments in your life while watching this movie. I will say you need to be in a loving or romantic mood before watching this movie. It does take a few minutes to really get good but when it does, it's wonderful. I hope you enjoy as much as I did. A Walk in the Clouds with Keanu Reeves is also like this movie. It has the same romance and drama but is much sweeter.

Utterly charming

[vincentlynch-moonoi · 7/10 · 30 April 2013]

I guess I've watched this film three times now, and each time I do I find it utterly charming. And, it seems so real. The situations in the plot do not seem "set up". It's a very pleasant story, but by pleasant I don't mean all happy. The crux of the story is really quite sad -- a woman is stunned by a divorce, reluctantly travels to Italy to get away from things, and takes on a new life with all its challenges, feeling for so long that she will never find someone.

The settings and cinematography are stunning. I spent most of my time traveling in Southeast Asia...never to Europe. This is one of those films that made me wish I had traveled to Italy! Diane Lane, who is a wonderful actress...well, this may be her most engaging role...and frankly, I can't think of an actress that would have been better (or half as good) in the part. Sandra Oh is very good as an unwed lesbian mother-to-be. Raoul Bova as an unexpectedly married Italian man (though I expected it) was very good. Pawel Szajda, as the young lover, was delightfully innocent. And there are many other well-played roles in this film...in fact, that is the primary strength of this film.

Highly recommended as a love story...well, actually as a hoped-for love story!

What utter rubbish

[f-moriconi2 · 3/10 · 11 April 2007]

I've just seen this film, and I've never laughed so much in my life! First of all I'm Italian and most importantly I live in Tuscany..... The things that happen in this film don't happen in real Italian life. Let's start: Italy is a bureaucratic nightmare, so if she(Frances) wanted to buy and live here she must wait months and months before she gets the house. In the village where she lives there are a lot of Italian stereotypes that you'll never find in Italy. In Italy, especially in small towns people speak bad Italian and mostly in dialect (even if you knew a little Italian you probably wouldn't understand)let alone speak English. The polish are quite uncommon in Italy, there are a lot of Moroccans and Albanians. Even if middle Italian beauty is higher than other countries,finding men like Raul Bova(Marcello) in the street is rare. The man that puts flowers in the vase everyday, in real life at the end of the film instead of saying hello,would have put his middle finger up ( in a rude gesture). Hardly anybody has fresco's in their home. The wedding dress the young girl wears looks as if its fifty years old. If you go in a fountain, the police would arrest you.....DON'T DO THAT IF YOU COME HERE!!!! If you ask a policeman for a lift(even if you are Naomi Campbell) he won't. In Florence hospitals you'll never find Armani or Vesace covers.

I've found a few truths as well: The old ladies usually are quite funny. The explanation that Chiara's mother gave about marriage is realistic. The young guys of Rome are like that. The man who continually says YES and OK. The explanation of Marcello about traffic lights in Campania is true. The big meals.

The good of this film is that it brings lots of tourists here.

Diane Lane in Italy. Nothing else matters in this nice but unremarkable movie.

[TxMike · 4 February 2004]

Well, 'Under The Tuscan Sun' isn't precisely unremarkable -- I am remarking on it right now!! There aren't many truly new stories in print and cinema, this one has been told many times -- someone finds theirself in a rut of some kind, is reluctant to step out onto an unknown path, but does so anyway to discover a better life. Diane Lane plays Frances, a writer, who early in the movie finds herself single again and free to do anything she wants. She is offered a chance to travel to Tuscany with a group of gay couples and at first she dismisses it. When she finally does take it, her life is transformed. The DVD has a nice Dolby 5.1 sound track, and the cinematography is superb, with beautiful shots of the Italian countryside and the Mediterranian coast. The 'making of' extra is only mildly interesting, and the three deleted scenes are even less so. There is an interesting 'Easter egg' showing how they digitally altered a man's naked butt, covering it to get the contractually mandated 'PG-13' rating in the USA. Overall a pleasant little movie that tries to seem important but isn't really. I believe it is '7' movie on the 10-point scale. I cannot imagine why 22% of the ratings are '10'.

SPOILERS are contained in the rest of my comments, beware!!

Apparently happily married, at a function for another author Frances is approached by a man whose book she had negatively reviewed, partly because the male character messed around with young women, he said "Do you see the irony?" Puzzled, then he said, 'Ask your husband.' Next thing we see is her and her attorney discussing disposition of joint property. Since he wants the house, her share is bought out, she keeps virtually nothing, goes to Italy, while on the bus sees a property for sale, against her nature gets off the bus, buys the old house, has natural 'buyer's remorse', but gets contractors and fixes it up, reminded me much of 'A Year In Provence'. In fact her strange blond friend is played by the same actress that plays 'Annie' in the 'Year in Provence' movie.

One contractor worker is a young Polish man, falls for Italian girl, parents don't approve, Frances helps convince them. Meanwhile she runs into a handsome Italian who gives her a ride to the coast, looking for fix-it-up parts, she asks him to make love to her, they apparently hit it off, but her pregnant gay friend shows up, Frances and the lover have a tough time meeting again, when she looks him up he has another girl, goes home, young couple wed in her courtyard, at the end an American (Rory Gilmore's dad) writer shows up, looking for Frances, we imagine they might hit it off. However, that doesn't matter, Frances has started a new life and is happy.

I liked the movie

[dafleadr · 7/10 · 7 February 2005]

It is a story about learning to love yourself. I think that any women out there who feel that they can not be happy unless it is with a man should watch this movie. I thought that the movie was pretty darn funny, and it has one of the best, most inspirational quotes in it: Between Austria and Italy, there is a section of the Alps called the Simmering; it is an impossibly steep, very high part of the mountains. They built a train track over this part of the Alps to connect Vienna and Venice. They built these tracks even before there was a train in existence that could make the trip; they built it because they knew...someday, the train would come.

Visually aesthetic, romantic, enticing love story *POSSIBLE SPOILERS*

[misteme2003 · 7/10 · 24 October 2004]

Definitely a chick flick. Or a date movie. But it grabs you because of the beautiful scenery. It's your typical date/chic movie because of its plot..woman gets scorned, discovers self, grows in character, and starts all over with a happy ending. But Diane Lane makes it worth watching. She herself has definitely grown as an actor and it shows, she seems to keep getting better and better in her romantic roles; The Perfect Storm, Unfaithful, and now this one. This movie falls into my "cute and entertaining" category..with a bit of more of a focus on the woman in a "relationship" rather than both a man and a woman. The beautiful, breathtaking cinematography really captures your attention, if you haven't been to charming far and away places, you'll find yourself wanting to after watching this one. I give it a 7/10, above average, but not perfect because of the fundamental plot/outline..and of course, the predictable ending. Watch it for the sheer beauty of the location and Diane Lane's skill as an actor.

Won me over

[spookydreamerboo · 8/10 · 26 June 2016]

OK, first of all a heads up... I'm a British man of 56, having just watched this on the TV on a lazy Sunday afternoon, when I could of been catching up with Glastonbury or the football (Euro 2016). Not, I guess, the target audience.

Well, as I sat there on the sofa with my cuppa, enjoying the scenery, and this striking lady who I hadn't seen before, (trust me, I know Diane now, and have a list of her films to watch), I just became entranced.

I know I'm being manipulated, the mass of stereotypes, the fact (unlike most of us) she can just cash buy a villa on a whim, BUT, I gave in and went for the ride, and it couldn't of been better. I didn't want it to end, the feel good, the decent people, the Tuscan sun! Add in fellow Brit Lindsay Duncan's great performance, the ensemble cast, and you have a joy to watch which surely will make anyone feel better.

Okay chick flick

[sunscape-35603 · 6/10 · 17 September 2021]

Wife picked it out to watch on Hulu. We liked it. I did even if it was a chick flick. My wife and her sister hiked around a little of Italy a few years back and plans to go again this fall if all works out, so she was pointing out things they had seen. She laughed at the guys all falling in "love" and chasing the main character. Her sister and her never had that problem. So, a little unrealistic movie. It is worth a look.

Recycled yet superior story

[bzb2001 · 10/10 · 23 December 2004]

Audrey Wells' "Under the Tuscan Sun" is generally not the type of film I look forward to. Even your average, forgettable romantic-comedy is filled with sappy, melodramatic overtones and over the top acting from Hollywood's best (paid) and brightest (jewelry). But from the previews you could tell that this film wanted to be more.

The story, alone, is different from most simple dating flicks. A middle-aged author (Diane Lane) ventures to Italy after a messy divorce and a creative drought. There she hopes to rekindle her life and hopefully her passions.

As one would assume, she is met with culture shock. She doesn't know the language or the customs. Though there is distinguished beauty to the land, there are also torrential thunderstorms and a visiting owl perched on her nightstand. Not what she is used to from her native San Francisco. The people seem friendly enough, but they are all driven by a perceived universal understanding that she does not share.

The villa she purchases is indeed beautiful, but it is also old and in need of repair - much like herself. She begins renovating the house and the plaster and rock become a metaphor for her own growth in the new region.

Much of what I have described seems like items we have experienced before in movies. And many are. But never do they seem over-used or washed up. Lane brings a melancholy charm to the role that could easily have fallen into emotional wrought or intense bitchiness. Instead, we follow her through Tuscany dreading and cheering her choices; loving and sympathizing with her.

Throughout the film there is a warm, self-deprecating humor that is both funny and human. The supporting characters have fully enriched lives of their own and are not just crutches for the primary plot. Much of the story is about love, wallowing in it, shining in it, wishing for it. But the story descends much deeper into the purpose for one's life and the need for companionship. I was especially impressed with a subverted plot that contrasts uptight American values with those of the laid-back Europeans.

Though some of the story lines are recycled, it is rare that they are presented this well done and with such a genuine feel. There isn't a second of this film I could do without. In many ways, I honestly can say I enjoyed it more than I would like to. A cynic like myself can't be enjoying movies like these too often. **** out of ****

Unique

[raulfaust · 7/10 · 15 February 2013]

In a first moment we get to think it's gonna be one of those movies in which the main girl is sad, depressed and finds a prince riding a white horse. "Under the Tuscan Sun" isn't that kind of movie. Frances is a divorced woman that travels to Italy, maybe to start a new life-- she doesn't actually know why she's leaving her home. Instead of finding a new man to marry, she finds some since people and develop a beautiful friendship with them. Don't get me wrong, she tries to find a man, but just like usually happens in real life, they end up in separate ways. Maybe that's the best point of this movie; showing that life isn't perfect and showing that one can find happiness even if not in a relationship. The plot isn't predictable at any time-- in fact, everything you try to guess you fail. There is no big achievement in the whole story, but it is a charming film for those who care about other people and how they connect to the world. Maybe a female audience will like it better.

Too long and too illogical

[MoonsofJupiter · 1/10 · 15 February 2004]

Unavoidable spoilers!

I like a romantic comedy as much as the next moviewatcher, but this one had so many dumb things about it that I couldn't ignore them and enjoy the story. I don't even know where to begin, but I'll give it a try.

Pains are taken to impress upon us that Frances, the leading lady, doesn't have much money after her loser husband takes half the house plus alimony. Well, fine, but when she goes to Italy she suddenly becomes independently wealthy, first buying a villa then employing three Polish workers full-time to restore the place. They were there the entire duration of the movie, which covered at least 8 or 9 months. Wardrobe? She arrived with one suitcase, but never wore the same thing twice after that. We see Frances tapping absently at the laptop occasionally and I suppose we're supposed to imagine she's reviewing a book...I wish I could get on that payroll.

Italian stereotypes? You want it, you got it. Crazy old contessa who takes bird poop on the forehead of a stranger as a sign to sell her the prized villa. Okay, whatever, even though she would have gotten more money from the German couple who had first dibs. Suave love-em and leave-em Romeos? All over the place. Simple, good-hearted locals happy to pick your olives for you? A whole villageful.

And then the biggest problem of all: Diane Lane's performance. How could an actress who was so good in Unfaithful be so bad this time? She twitched and grimaced like a female Hugh Grant, using delayed reaction goggle-eyes instead of emotion. The self-grabbing congratulatory dance she did in her bedroom after scoring with her young stud was painful to watch. Another awful scene was when Patti came back pregnant and abandoned and lay in the bed crying. Diane Lane's face was vacant, with a fake little soap opera frown of concern on her brow and a simpering smile on her mouth. Awful, and inexcusable of the director to leave that shot in.

And all of this was just too long, with so many little unnecessary scenes that we didn't need. And what about that Tuscan sun we were promised? There were virtually no shots of the hot passionate sun of Italy, which would at least have helped to explain the crazy behaviour going on all around.

And after all that poor Frances ends up with a goofy-looking failed American writer, while all that prime Italian beefcake goes to waste. Like my evening watching this.

3 stars out of 10.

One of my favourite feel good movies

[destiny_west · 10/10 · 28 January 2023]

Whenever I am feeling down, this is one of the movies that I turn to. Besides being a big fan of the beautiful and talented Diane Lane. I absolutely adore Under The Tuscan Sun.

Diane plays Frances. A book reviewer/editor who finds out through a disgruntled author that her husband is cheating on her. Her bestfriend is expecting a baby and can no longer go on a trip to Italy so they offer it to Frances, she accepts and off she goes.

There she falls in love with a beautiful villa in Tuscany and so it goes.

The scenery is stunning, and you can't help but feel a ping of jealousy even if it just a movie.

Diane Lane is as gorgeous as ever, endearing, romantic and funny.

I would highly recommend this as a beautiful escape for anyone.

Predictable, but sweet

[wnterstar · 7/10 · 20 April 2006]

Diane Lane plays a woman who is trying to find herself after a bitter divorce. She is sent on a bus tour of Tuscany by her best friends, and is moved to buy and renovate a run down villa. Along the way, she finds that what she has all she really wants in life right there.

There are no real surprises in this movie, but there are a few well acted scenes. Diane Lane is good in her part, but Lindsay Duncan steals the movie as an eccentric ex-patriot.

This movie is worth seeing if just for the cinematography...it will make you want to go to Tuscany yourself! This movie gets a 7 out of 10 from me for that alone!

Can I give this a zero?

[tezhowes · 1/10 · 8 January 2008]

Well to do American divorcée with more money than brains buys a rundown villa in Tuscany. (Much more money; whilst having to dicker over the price, she subsequently manages to cook sumptuous buffets for her workmen and wander around Italy indefinitely with no job or apparent means of support.) Interminable boredom and the inevitable Italian lover ensue; this is a chick flick in the most pejorative sense of the term. Lane acts like an unskilled clueless teenage ingénue throughout - which dynamically clashes with her seriously fading looks - along the way smashing into a variety of (mostly Italian) cardboard stereotypes, dykes, divas, senile contessas and gigolos among them. Bloated with unnecessary scenes, the most ridiculous being a clumsily inserted and pointless recreation of the fountain scene in 'La Dolce Vita'. (A similar conceit was used in an effective and appropriate narrative context in 'Only You', Norman Jewison's vastly superior ode to Italy and romance). 'Tuscan Sun' may be the most vacant piece of cinema of the last decade, despite its admittedly well-lensed panoramas of Italy. Bonus negative point for the extraneous lover parachuted in at the last minute to provide requisite Hollywood ending for its targeted audience of Oprah-brainwashed housewives. Avoid at all costs, unless, of course, you view Oprah and Dr. Phil as pinnacles of intelligent discourse.