Two writers thrown together on a book tour in Mexico.
Pam says:
Just in time to set the mood for Valentine’s Day is “Book of Love,” starring the newest version of Hugh Grant, Sam Clafin as Henry Copper, a young, uptight published author who gets schooled on writing his own book thanks to his Spanish translator Maria (Veronica Echegui). The story may be rather predictable, but it has heart and charm as it closes one chapter and begins another.
To read her review in its entirety, go to RHR
Chuck says:
So, listen to this premise: A struggling English author pens a novel that’s taken him years to write and it abruptly bombs, so much so that the only person that shows up at his one public reading does so by accident. Soon, stores are offering a “Buy One, Get Three Free” sale just to get this turkey off the shelves. However, for some odd reason, the novel is the number one book in Mexico, prompting the author’s publisher to ship him abroad on an impromptu promotional tour, where he’ll be accompanied by the woman who translated his story. Turns out, she added a lot of steamy details to his dull tale turning it into a sexy sensation. He’s furious; she could care less; sparks ensue.
Frankly, this isn’t a bad rom-com scenario. There have been good movies based on worse ideas yet somehow the makers of “Book of Love” botch it. Bad casting and a leisurely pace doom this one from the start as does a myriad of missed opportunities that would have added some much-needed heart and humor to this regrettably pedestrian affair.
Sam Claflin is the writer, Henry Cooper, constantly back on his heels, stammering through every conversation and exuding a lack of confidence that makes Millhouse from “The Simpsons” seem like a real go-getter. His counterpart is Veronica Echegui as Maria, effortlessly sexy, single mom translator with a fiery edge and who’s so far out of Cooper’s league that in the real world she’d never give him the time of day…but this is the movies, so…
They, as well as Maria’s son and grandfather set out on the three-city book tour in a beat-up VW Beetle and it winds up being the sort of trip that seems much longer than it is. Scenes lag, the story stalls and I found myself checking the time far too often. Surprisingly, Claflin and Echegui generate the kind of spark you’d get from striking a match in a monsoon. He’s usually quite charming and I’ve enjoyed him in past films. Having him play Cooper as a drab wallflower is a fatal misstep.
The screenplay by David Quantick and director Analeine Cal y Mayor is rife with undeveloped characters. Among them, Maria’s grandfather Max (Fernando Becerril) is a cypher, only around to give a disapproving look to his granddaughter’s deadbeat ex. A scene or three in which he explains to the hapless Cooper why Maria’s parents are absent, what makes her tick and why his grandson is so quiet would have helped us connect with them and provide a logical avenue for the writer to win her over.
The same problem plagues Maria’s son Diego (Ruy Gaytan), who appears in perhaps three scenes. Moments in which he explains how he feels about his absent father and his mother to this interloper could have added a great deal of charm to the story and built a bridge between the characters. As it is, they only have one scene together, making the hug they share when they ultimately part ring hollow.
While watching this turgid disaster, I couldn’t help but wonder what Cary Grant and Katy Jurado under the eye of Howard Hawks or Tom Hanks and Salma Hayek as directed by Nora Ephron would have done with this story. This sort of material requires its dialogue delivered at rat-a-tat-tat speed and a deft touch that allows the comedy and romance to develop naturally. Needless to say, “Book” is lacking all of this, resulting in a movie that had me thinking “I should really be getting my laundry done,” as I endured it.
2 Stars
