Director: Max Giwa and Dania Pasquini
Stars: Greg Wise, Annabel Scholey, Giulio Berruti
Genre: Musical, Romance
Synopsis: Do you remember your first holiday romance? Taylor does, the only problem is her sister is now marrying him… Set to the greatest hits of 80s.
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This movie came out about a year ago. However recently, it was released V.O.D. I had a chance to watch it, and here is what I think. I would warn you that this review might be a little biased. I simply love me some chick flicks. Therefore, you can take what I am about to write as a grain of salt. Just know, I enjoyed this movie a lot more than I care to admit.
Music: Since this is a musical, I will have to start dissecting the soundtrack first. If you were born in the 80s or early 90s, this soundtrack is a wet dream. From “If I Could Turn Back Time” (Cher) to “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” (Cyndi Lauper). They had something for everybody, even for the macho man who denies publicly that he likes any of the songs(but secretly he do). The performance and dance numbers are some of the cheesiest, I have seen up-to-date, but it surprisingly works! I will say this, their music timing sucks. It literally comes out of left field. There was a musical number during a food fight that felt forced. But, the viewer accepts it because at this point you have accepted everything else, so what’s one more thing to add to the list.
Story: The story was way better than I thought. I am not saying that I expected it to be lousy, but I was not expecting anything spectacular. What I did get was a plot line straight from General Hospital. The main character’s old summer love is now engaged to her older sister! But, it does not stop there. The older sister’s ex-boyfriend reappears in the picture to win her heart!! Add a wacky assortment of friends and that’s how a great chick flick is born. The characters for the most part are light hearted and relatable, except one. His name was Doug. He is literally one step away from being Peppy Le Pew. Obscene comments, he makes them. Respect for personal space is non-existent. Taking advantage of a girl, while drunk, is his forte. He is simply, a sleaze, with a dash of charm. You find yourself slightly rooting for him to win over the heart of the older sister. But, if does not work out, it is okay because he is, what he does best, and that is be a sleaze.
Acting: The acting of the cast was bad. I mean bad as you forgetting to put deodorant on in 90 degrees weather. Of course, you may have one or two better actors/actresses that rise above the other D-list cast members. This time the best actress was Leona Lewis who had her acting debut here. Granted, the performance of Lewis was not that much above her peers; but, you can tell she was trying, and that counts for something. The worst actress was the older sister. Her acting was over the top. She tried too hard to be what she was not and it came across just as that. Concerning the younger sister, there is only one word to describe her … wood. The male lead was a little better than wood, I give him that, but still bad. Doug was okay. The rest of the cast was honestly a pain to watch, and the whole movie could have done without them.
Overall: Overall, I was pleased with Walking on Sunshine. It does have a few things working against it like: cheesy lines, dancing numbers and, a U.K. filming style (which you can tell out the gate). Not to say these qualities are terrible, but the film like sushi. Requires an acquired taste, and is not for everyone. But, for the people whom it is intended for, it is not going to matter as much. If you are a fan of musicals, definitely give this a try. If you are not, just stay clear. All this movie is going to do is give you a headache and hemorrhoid.
Score 6.0 out of 10
Would it be too much for me to ask for a sequel?
