Here is the most apt example I've seen lately in which everything is just a bit off the mark. Although I'm not familiar with Leavitt's novel, I have read other pieces of his work and find it equally uneven. For example, his central theme here of music being the "food of love" (one of Shakepeare's most quoted lines) just never reaches a level of complete fulfillment within the context of this often pretentious and sappy melodrama. Although the original title ("The Page Turner") implies a subtle judgment that the main character is doomed to eternal mediocrity, and opening scenes of the film confirm that hint, "Paul" is nevertheless forced upon the audience as a worthy protagonist whose professional and personal fate is vitally important. That kind of maybe-he-is and maybe-he-isn't paradigm is plain confusing, and it shows. Plot weaknesses are also apparent throughout. Similarly, the very high production values of the movie are constantly being undercut by laughable presumptions that an American audience could ever accept British actors straining to sound correct in their roles within an obviously European setting being palmed off (sorry) as California. Or am I being too picky? Geraldine McEwan as a Czech (?) piano teacher sounds exactly like Robin Williams playing Mrs. Doubtfire. And Juliet Stevenson comes across as a sort of über-California caricature. Moreover, the background scenes of New York are clearly scissors-and-paste.
Be that as it may, I give this one a 7 out of 10 for showing Barcelona as not only a fascinating place, but also as an excellent locale for making a movie.
Be that as it may, I give this one a 7 out of 10 for showing Barcelona as not only a fascinating place, but also as an excellent locale for making a movie.