[Rating: Minor Rock Fist Up]
I’m a nostalgic person when it comes to movies I like in the modern age. I remember at one point you could go to a theater and enjoy the latest rom-com, before Netflix oversaturated the market and made all of their cheesy, and oftentimes cringy movies. It’s a delight to know that rom-coms that are theatrically released still have the heart and humor meant to sustain an ever changing audience. You, Me & Tuscany (directed by Kat Coiro) is a delightful little film that will make audiences clamor for more romance, pasta and vino.
Anna Motgomery (Halle Bailey) is a professional house sitter and former aspiring chef. Anna tends to pretend that the houses that she watches are hers, leading her to some awkward miscommunications with clients, and her eventual firing. One night, she meets a hunky Italian man, Matteo (Lorenzo de Moor), and after a night of fun at the bar, the two head back to his room where Matteo ends up falling asleep. Anna, meanwhile, remembers that Matteo told her she would love Italy and on an impulse, flies to Tuscany without a plan going forward of where to actually stay. This in turn leads Anna to remember Matteo “offered” his home anytime she visited. However, this is where the miscommunication Anna is so well known for comes into more extreme play.
Anna unexpectedly runs into Matteo’s entire family, and after some words are exchanged, the family sees a ring on Anna’s finger, thinking that she is Matteo’s future bride. In order to hide her random appearance at a Tuscany villa, Anna goes along with the charade until she can figure out how to get back to America. Unfortunately for her, Matteo’s adopted brother Michael (Rege-Jean Page) detects something is up with Anna’s story. In turn, Anna and Michael start an interesting attraction with one another, despite her being Matteo’s (albeit fake) fiance! Plus, things get even more complicated when Anna and Matteo’s family start embracing each other, even inviting Anna to cook in their family restaurant for the town’s big festival!
Just reflecting on this flick brings me a warm nostalgic joy. Bailey is such a lovely presence on screen, I like how convincing she is lying to an entire family about who she actually is. She brings that feeling of a 90s romcom star like Julia Roberts into the 2020s.
Her flirt-mance with Page is also very lovey, and provides many of the movie’s laughs. If anything, I just wish the movie itself was something totally revolutionary and groundbreaking. Again, maybe it’s a sign of the times, trying to get this genre of movie actually in a theater, so it’ll do for now! You, Me & Tuscany might not break the mold, but it’s a nostalgic warm hug.
Christian Ramos is a classic film fan, having had the dream to host Turner Classic Movies for years now. He also has a large amount of Oscar trivia in his head, remembers dressing as Groucho Marx one Halloween, and cherishes the moment Julianne Moore liked his tweet.
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