When In Rome (2010)

 

When In Rome - 2010

Up next we have 2010's "When In Rome", a film about a woman who travels to Rome to attend a wedding.  She gets more than she bargained for when she picks up coins out of a fountain.  Arriving in Rome alone, she now has to contend with five suitors who are seemingly under a spell.

The film's cast includes Kristen Bell, Josh Duhamel, John Heder, Dax Shepard, Will Arnett, Alexis Dziena, Luca Calvani, Anjelica Huston, Danny DeVito, Don Johnson, Bobby Moynihan, Shaquille O'Neal, Lawrence Taylor, Kate Micucci, Keir O'Donnell, Kristen Schaal, and Lee Pace.

Beth Martin is a young curator at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City.  She's anxious to prove she's got what it takes to handle the job.

However, her love life is in a bit of a jumble.  ("Yeah, I remember, Brady, really clearly when you broke up with me in the Applebee's," she tells her ex-boyfriend.)

She's also got a major exhibition coming up, and some new travel plans to Rome to attend her sister's wedding don't exactly sit well with her boss, Celeste.

She arrives in the Eternal City with no expectations other than being the maid of honor at her sister's wedding and getting back home within forty-eight hours.

While at the wedding, Beth meets best man Nick Beamon and unexpectedly starts to fall for him.  The two have a very nice time together at the wedding reception.

Later, Beth plans a little rendezvous with Nick, but is dismayed when she sees him kissing another woman (this is explained later as a "crazy cousin" of the groom and Nick was just as blown away by the event).

After having one too many drinks, Beth starts wading into the "Fountain of Love".  She picks up five coins, believing it will save them from their owners from the fate of being disappointed in love.  Later, Beth's sister tells her that the legend of the fountain is that you take coins, their owners will fall in love with you.

Beth doesn't believe in any of that until the owners of the coins start to obsessively stalk her.  They are an artist, a male model, a magician, a businessman who deals in sausage, and, apparently, Nick (though Beth doesn't realize that one of the coins belongs to him yet).

Beth gives Nick a second chance and they find they enjoy each other's company a lot.  In one very funny scene, they go on a date at a blacked-out restaurant.  They must rely on every sense but sight to get them through the evening.

Once Beth finds out that one of the coins belongs to Nick, she starts to backpedal fast.  She abruptly ends the relationship and gives him back his coin.  She also gives the other coins back to their original owners, which ends their obsession with her.

Nick comes through in a big way for Beth at her major art show.  He also tells her that he is not under any spell except for one.  "The only spell I'm under...is yours," he says and they share a kiss.

Nick and Beth get engaged and decide to hold their wedding in Rome, where they first met.  Everyone seems to get a happy ending.  We even discover that Nick's coin wasn't thrown by him at all.  I won't spoil that surprise for you.

Cast rundown:

   Kristen Bell...........................Beth Martin

   Josh Duhamel........................Nick Beamon

   John Heder............................Lance

   Dax Shepard.........................Gale

   Will Arnett............................Tony

   Alexis Dziena.........................Joan

   Luca Calvani..........................Umberto

   Anjelica Huston......................Celeste

   Danny DeVito........................Al Russo

   Don Johnson.........................Beth's Father

   Bobby Moynihan....................Puck

   Shaquille O'Neal....................Himself

   Lawrence Taylor.....................Himself

   Kate Micucci..........................Stacey

   Keir O'Donnell.......................Father Dino

   Kristen Schaal.......................Ilona

   Lee Pace...............................Brady Sacks

And that's it for When In Rome.  The Fountain of Love depicted in this film is not true.  It is based on the Trevi Fountain (the true Fountain of Love).  In fact, it is against the law to remove coins from the fountain as it is considered the equivalent of stealing other people's wishes.

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