‘Casanova’ deserves little love

Webster’s defines a romp as “a light, fast-paced narrative, dramatic, or musical work usually in a comic mood.” The new film “Casanova” certainly warrants this description and follows in the tradition of such hugely successful films as “Tom Jones” and “The Three Musketeers.”

Giacomo Casanova was a historical figure who lived in Europe, primarily Italy, in the 18th century (1725-1798). By all accounts, Casanova led a fascinating life that entailed such varied occupations as soldier, spy, diplomat, writer, adventurer and autobiographer, which established his reputation as the most famous erotic hero.

Casanova’s “History of My Life,” which chronicles his adventures until 1744, is thought to be a mostly unreliable account of his dalliances with 122 women. However, it is valued as a rare firsthand glimpse into European culture in the mid-18th century. Written very late in Casanova’s life, it was considered so controversial the original manuscripts were not released for publication by Casanova’s family until 1960.

With such a rich history to draw upon, it is surprising the screenplay for “Casanova,” credited to Jeffrey Hatcher and Kimberly Simi, decided to create a fictional episode set in 1700s Venice. Perhaps the days of unapologetic bawdiness have passed. The new Casanova is a misunderstood seeker of romance whose past indiscretions were merely preambles to his encounter with his one true love. While this story line may be suitably palatable to modern audiences, it does not translate into a more interesting character or entertaining story.

In this film, Casanova is played by Heath Ledger, whose performance hints at what might have been. Ledger’s Casanova is seductive, intelligent and seems to have a depth beyond that of a simple libertine. However, he is obsessed with the spirited Francesca, an early advocate of women’s rights who seems intent on taking male-dominated Venetian society to task.

Francesca’s predicament is further complicated by her family’s financial plight. On the verge of being sent to debtors’ prison, Francesca’s mother, Lady Bruni (Lena Olin), has arranged for her to be married to a man she has never met, Papprizzio (Oliver Platt), a wealthy lard merchant from Genoa.

Of course, Casanova represents everything Francesca despises, which compels him to assume the identity of his manservant and later the lard merchant Papprizzio. Casanova’s pursuit of Francesca is further complicated by his prior engagement to the virginal Victoria, an obligation he assumed solely to avoid prosecution by the Inquisition for heresy and fornication.

As would be expected, Venice provides a picturesque and romantic backdrop. As the city remains virtually unchanged since Casanova’s time, I imagine locations required little alteration. The costumes are truly magnificent and the production values cannot be faulted. The bones of a good movie appear to be here, including a great supporting performance by Oliver Platt as the corpulent Papprizzio. Also good is Jeremy Irons as Pucci, the Inquisitor sent from Rome to put an end to Venice’s debauchery.

“Casanova” is directed by Lasse Hallstrom, who is best known for his fine dramatic films, including such memorable offerings as “Cider House Rules,” “The Shipping News” and “Chocolat.” Once again, comedy seems to have proven itself the most difficult genre in which to have success. While there are some genuine laughs along the way, they are few and far between. “Casanova” always seems to be trying a bit too hard, and the strain is evident.

“Casanova” is light, frothy and mildly entertaining, but it is probably worth a rental rather than the full price of admission. There is nothing particularly wrong with “Casanova.” It’s just been done before, and better.

* VAN NOVACK, 50, is the director of institutional research at Cal State Long Beach and lives in Huntington Beach with his wife Elizabeth.

Sex and ping-pong from Woody Allen

How much of life is strictly luck? If the universe wasn’t designed by an all-powerful intelligent being but exists merely because of a random happenstance that snowballed into human existence, is it better to be exceptionally lucky or exceptionally skillful?

These are the questions posed by Woody Allen in his latest creation, “Match Point.” This is a love story about infidelity, morality and finding the line that marks the difference between right and wrong.

The story follows Chris (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers) as he transforms himself from a penniless tennis pro at a country club into a member of the English aristocracy. Early in the film, Chris makes friends with a wealthy club member and gets invited to spend a weekend at the member’s family castle.

In a scene that will undoubtedly be parodied during the opening number at this year’s Academy Awards, Woody Allen shows his unique sense of humor by using ping-pong as the subtext for sexual desire.

At the castle, Chris meets Nola (Scarlett Johansson), and she challenges him to a game of table tennis. Nola radiates sexuality and is used to having power over men, but she suddenly finds herself playing against a much stronger opponent.

The problem is that Nola is the fiancée of Tom (Matthew Goode), the friend from the country club who invited Chris to the castle for the weekend.

Also, Tom’s sister Chloe (Emily Mortimer) is falling in love with Chris, and Chris is more than happy to encourage Chloe’s feelings. Chloe is a beautiful woman with a sweet disposition and a massively wealthy family. Marrying her is better than winning the lottery.

Having an affair with Nola would throw away that lottery ticket, but Chris doesn’t care. He can’t control his passion for Nola, and eventually she can’t live without him either.

The loves scenes are hot, and even a little kinky, but they are never exploitative. Woody Allen wants us to see that Nola and Chris have an intense sexual relationship, but he has no interest in making a soft-core porn flick like “9 1/2 Weeks.”

The result is that the characters learn that there’s no such thing as a purely sexual relationship. Even if an affair is kept secret, it still affects other people’s lives. There are always consequences to actions, even in a world ruled by chance. And just how long can you keep the world from noticing a relationship that’s built on unbridled, insatiable, animal lust?

The back-and-forth between Chris’s relationships with Nola and Chloe is occasionally a little monotonous. We quickly get the idea that he’s more passionate about Nola than Chloe, but the repetition makes it clear that he’s not being honest with either woman. There’s no winning solution to this problem. Someone is going to get hurt.

“Match Point” has few quintessential moments that clearly mark Woody Allen’s signature on this script. Chris is too consumed by his own selfishness to spend a lot of time pontificating about existentialism, but when the characters do venture into this turf, it breaks up the tension in the story. It feels as if Woody Allen is making fun of himself.

His characters seem to interact in art galleries more than characters in other movies. He likes to have characters stand in front of paintings and talk. The most famous one of these scenes is probably the one in “Play It Again Sam,” when he tries to ask a suicidal nihilist for date. “Match Point” doesn’t have anything quite that absurd, but this isn’t that kind of movie.

Although the paintings aren’t essential to the story, the way that the characters interact with their art tells us a lot about who they are. The large matriarchal portrait of Chloe’s mother in the family sitting room tells you almost everything you need to know about that character. Chloe’s loving disposition is also reflected in the artwork she chooses to have in her life.

This is not a formulaic movie, and it doesn’t follow the predictable pattern for stories about infidelity. These characters are complicated, as are their relationships. Unfortunately, neither Rhys-Meyers nor Johansson are able to show us all of their characters’ complexities in a single moment.

Generally, Rhys-Meyers comes across as a little stiff, but this isn’t always a bad thing. His lack of passion sometimes helps communicate someone whose manipulative and just saying what he knows someone needs to hear. In the moments when the movie is dragging, the biggest problem is that he doesn’t bring anything special to the screen.

Johansson sizzles when her character is on fire, but she doesn’t have a lot of range between hot and cold. We never feel like there might be more to her character than what we are seeing on the screen, and that’s too bad.

“Match Point” is a little longer than it needs to be and has a few spots where the story starts to drag a bit, but overall it’s an engaging movie with interesting characters. It offers a lot to discuss over coffee afterward. There are some great lines of dialogue, compelling images and then the questions raised by the story itself.

This is an excellent date flick, and will also be a great rental. It will be fun to hear the director’s commentary track, if Woody Allen chooses to do one.

* JIM ERWIN, 40, is a technical writer and computer trainer.

‘Rumor Has It’ should show, not tell

People get cold feet before getting married. In “Rumor Has It,” doubts about saying “I do” begin for Sarah (Jennifer Aniston) just after accepting her boyfriend’s marriage proposal. Sarah’s concerns worsen after confiding in her grandmother about her mixed feelings for Jeff (Mark Ruffalo), her fiance. Grandma let slip one of the family’s best-kept secrets. The family skeleton in question is more than 30 years old. Some involved in the scandal are still living, and some are pushing up daisies. The one person able to separate fact from fiction needs to be found. Sarah sets out to meet the mysterious tall and handsome gentleman to discover if there is any truth or just rumor to what is being said.

“Rumor Has It” is based on the story line of another movie, “The Graduate.” The ‘60s film about a 40-year-old married woman seducing her best friend’s son became an instant hit at the box office. Connecting Sarah and her family to Mrs. Robinson and other characters from “The Graduate” is necessary if the audience wants to follow the story plot. Flashbacks are an effective way to move back and forth between the past and present. A good example of how flashbacks work is “Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood,” in which the characters from the past play out the events alongside events in the present. The technique lets audiences get a feel for what the people are like by seeing them in action, allowing them to form their own opinion about what they see instead of being told what to think.

Instead of using flashbacks, “Rumor Has It” relies on the “she did this, and then she did that” method. The audience is told what happens in lieu of seeing who does what to whom and where. The effect is similar to hearing bits and pieces of the same story from several different people, which is how Sarah learns the rumor.

Talking about the action instead of showing the action works better as a radio program or telephone conversation than a movie that has people describing what happened to other people. It’s a lot like catching up on the family news during the annual get-together at the holidays.

Shirley MacLaine as the grandmother provides the funniest and most colorful moments. Kathy Bates’ brief scene playing Sarah’s aunt is another bright spot in the film. Their larger-than-life characters are so animated and exude a tremendous zest for life that is sorely missed when neither actor is in the scene.

The chick flick’s combination of two separate movies is confusing at times and ultimately predictable. “Rumor Has It” would best be seen curled up on the couch in front of the television with girlfriends.

* PEGGY J. ROGERS produces commercial videos and documentaries.

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