Director: Suzanne Bier
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Trine Dyrholm,Kim Bodnia,
Paprika Steen, Sebastian Jessen, Christiane
Schaumburg-Müller, Molly Blixt Egelind
Rating: (M)
2 stars (out of 5)
Following on from her Academy Award-winning film In a
Better World, Danish director Suzanne Bier steers well clear of
producing another heart-wrenching drama, opting instead for a
paint-by-numbers comedy.
So who better to cast as one of the romantic leads than
Pierce Brosnan. Brosnan plays Phillip, a wealthy executive
specialising in the trade of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Phillip supposedly understands Danish, but only ever answers
in English, which is curious, especially as it takes a while
to figure out quite why he is based in Denmark.
On the other side of the romance equation is Ida (Trine
Dyrholm), a comely 40-something, who on the eve of finishing
breast cancer treatment, discovers that Leif (Kim Bodnia),
her buffoon of a husband, is having an affair.
Meanwhile, Phillip's son Patrick (Sebastian Jessen) is
planning to marry Ida's daughter Astrid (Molly Blixt Egelind)
in Italy, and when the parents run into each other
(literally) at Copenhagen airport, it's really no secret to
how this is going to shake down.
When all the disparate elements come together for the
nuptials on the majestic Amalfi Coast, the drama is buried
under a series of ham-fisted setups while we are bludgeoned
with the never-ending refrain of That's Amore. If the film
ended here it might be easier to forgive a few
transgressions, but unfortunately there is still time run.
Best thing: The gratuitous use of beautiful landscape
shots.
Worst thing: Being so blatantly obvious all the time.
See it with: Anyone who liked Under the Tuscan Sun or
Mamma Mia.
By Mark Orton.
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