Casanova

(L-R) Sienna Miller, Heath Ledger. © 2005 Touchstone Pictures. All rights reserved.

Watching an unabashed chick-flick like “Casanova,” to me, is about as appealing as going to the dentist. At best the experience will make me wince a few times and be mildly painful – at worst there will be agony and excruciating pain. On that basis I will say that watching this movie is more analogous to having my teeth cleaned than it is to a root canal. If this sounds like dubious praise, trust me, it is.

As directed by Lasse Hallström, “Casanova” reaches levels of absurdity seldom seen outside of the realms of satire and situation comedies. The movie purports to tell the story of the famous 18th century lover Lord Jacomo Casanova (Heath Ledger) and how he came to find the true love of his lifetime, the beautiful and spirited Francesca Bruni (Sienna Miller). If there is any truth to this story then I can only assume that finding true love in 18th century Venice required more misunderstandings and instances of mistaken identity than an entire season of Three’s Company.

The real Casanova was notorious for his female conquests, a fact that none should find surprising given that 200-plus years later his name is still synonymous with womanizing. Heath Ledger portrays him as a well-meaning hedonist who is undeterred by either law or convention in his pursuit of sensuality. Women both young and old swoon at the mention of his name. Other men are either threatened by his way with women, or are in awe of his methods at wooing them. Fathers wish for nothing more than for him to stay far away from their daughters. Casanova, you see, is just the type of lovable rogue that any romantic comedy worth its salt must reform before the end of the picture.

The plot, however flimsy it is, unfolds when Casanova is captured after yet another conquest at a local nunnery. The local magistrate is eager to finally be rid of him, thus he is sentenced to be hanged for his debauchery. Guilty though he may be, Casanova has friends in high places and, after the Prince intervenes, he is pardoned in exchange for his promise to marry and becomes a respectable citizen. He only has a matter of days to fulfill this pledge – and while finding a suitable wife in such a short time would be impossible for most mortal men, we are of course talking about Casanova here…

Within moments he is engaged to an angelic beauty named Victoria (Natalie Dormer) who is only too anxious to be ravaged by the famous lover. His interest in Victoria enrages her bashful neighbor Giovanni Bruni (Charlie Cox) as he often watches her (somehow unseen) from his window, desperately in love. Bruni clumsily challenges Casanova to a duel. He first declines, but is forced nonetheless to accept. Once there, Casanova battles with a masked opponent who turns out not to be Giovanni Bruni, but rather his sister Francesca.

Casanova is immediately smitten with her and thus wishes to end his engagement to Victoria and marry Francesca. Unfortunately for him, Francesca is also engaged. Her fiance is the heretofore unmentioned and unseen pork lard magnate, Lord Papprizzio (Oliver Platt) who is due to arrive in Venice shortly.

When the Lord Papprizzio arrives in Venice, Casanova rents his home to the rotund Papprizzio and poses as infamous author of letters on the nature of women. Casanova convinces the rich yet insecure Papprizzio not to reveal himself to Francesca until he has been transformed into the type of man that will make Francesca swoon with desire. This ruse allows Casanova to masquerade as Lord Papprizzio to win Francesca’s favor.

As if there weren’t enough challenges for Casanova, Bishop Pucci (Jeremy Irons) has been sent by the Vatican to Venice to bring Casanova to justice once and for all.

You needn’t worry about poor Casanova – rest assured, he will not be hung for his crimes. Though he is a living legend and women throw themselves at his feet everywhere, he will successfully conceal his identity just long enough to not be recognized by Pucci. Francesca will be likewise be duped, but will forgive the man she loves, however contrary that choice is to everything she has said throughout the movie. Lord Papprizzio will not be angry at Casanova because, through this elaborate scheme, even the morbidly obese Papprizzio will find true love. I could divulge more, but I won’t…I’ll just say that this film culminates in such an absurd and happy ending that you’ll likely not mind having your intelligence so flagrantly insulted.

While the story hinges upon myriad instances of miscommunication and mistaken identity, the actors do acquit themselves well to such farcical material. Ledger plays Casanova with an ample supply of charm and wit, and he is able to hold the chaos together with his likeable portayal. Sienna Miller, is adequate as Francesca, but her character is so seemingly hell-bent on being an outspoken feminist that her motives for choosing Casanova seem to come out of nowhere. Oliver Platt, God love him, steals scenes as always – and much to the audiences audible chagrin, goes shirtless for one of them. I dare say that Lord Papprizzio, is one of the largest characters in the history of the cinema, and I half-expected him to be strangled to death by a bikini-clad Princess Leia. Rounding out the primary cast is Jeremy Irons who is so cartoonishly evil in this film that I kept expecting him to relapse into “Lion King” mode and accidently refer to Casanova as Mufasa.

All in all “Casanova” is an enjoyable and undemanding film. It is meant to entertain, and often it succeeds in doing so. Comparing this film’s plot to a sitcom does not mean that this film is bad, just that it’s premise is one that will be familiar because you’ve seen it done before. This is not to say that it was done as well before as it is here. The actors in this film are clearly overacting, and just as clearly enjoying themselves. “Casanova” is not meant be taken seriously, nor should it be. The movie is sporadically fun and frequently illogical, but given that the subject matter is love… well, perhaps that approach is best after all.

Casanova • Dolby® Digital surround sound in select theatres • Running Time: 108 minutes • MPAA Rating: R for some sexual content. • Distributed by Buena Vista Pictures