Under the Tuscan Sun
Frances (Diane Lane) is going through some tough times. She's going through a divorce, a move to a singles complex, and now at a crossroads in life. And according to her friends, only a previously planned trip to Tuscany will cure what ails her. When she arrives as part of a tour with gay males, she's the typical tourist until she lays her eyes on a villa that's up for sale. A day later, she owns it. As part of her rebirth, she gets to rebuild her home, meet the neighbors, find romance in all the right places, and intervene on behalf of a young Polish worker eager to win his girlfriend's parents' approval. And all the while, she finds happiness where she hadn't had it before.

The movie is very pretty to look at. The scenes of the Italian countryside are lush with vibrant colors and full of life; a photographer's dream. Diane Lane is very pretty to look at. Few actresses can light up and command the screen with her beauty while dazzling us with her acting abilities. But other than the rebuilding of the home to bring a sense of comic relief as well as revitalization in her life and the support of her best friend (who at first doesn't want to go to Italy because of her pregnancy, yet goes there when she's much farther along), the movie really goes through many hoops to get to the end result with different storylines that either lead to nowhere or simply just aren't interesting. The scenes with the two star-crossed lovers don't exude true love and doesn't convince me as to why her parents would agree to marriage. I really don't understand the point of Katherine (Lindsay Duncan) in the movie. And can someone distinguish which guy is which? Or are they all the same person? As you try to figure it out, marvel at Lane and Italy; they're the things to watch. 2 stars