Casanova

Reviewed by Alicia Glass
August 7, 2006

Studio: Touchstone / Disney MPAA: R Website: Click Here Review Rating: 8 out of 10

Courtesy BV Entertainment.

History's most notorious ladies' man, Giancomo Casanova, has to select a single female to wed and be faithful to, lest he be banished from his beloved Venice, or worse, face the headsman's axe. The chosen target, Victoria , simpers while her other would-be suitor, Giovanni Bruni, challenges Casanova to a duel. Misadventure leads our hero to discover he is not dueling Giovanni at all, but his sister, Francesca. The fiery Francesca defies male authority, challenges custom, and in doing so, wins Casanova's heart.

The movie itself is an adorable comedy of errors, a farce of love if you will. Everyone chases each other around, and each character learns something about love in the end… even the mistaken Bishop. Don't expect a ton of historical accuracy. Any female who defied an entire quorum of male scholars in that time period would be in a LOT of trouble. An entire dormitory of deflowered apprentice nuns, with a half-naked Casanova being chased over the rooftop, would NOT be funny to their Abbess. And yes, the Bishop can have the very Doge' of Venice be demoted or even executed on a church-sanctioned whim. The movie isn't supposed to be a dramatic telling of Casanova's life story and the mistakes he made. It's a celebration of the follies of life, the idiotic things we do for love, and the moments where we can only stop the girl from crying by kissing her.

The costumes were fair, although the designers did fall into that age-old habit of cutting the stolen male clothing to fit the female actress wearing them. The movie has incorrect historical accuracies but the effect is charming and was fashionable in Venice. A satisfying cast includes: Heath Ledger as Casanova, Sienna Miller as Francesca, Jeremy Irons as the Bishop, and Oliver Platt as the delightfully unabashed Papprizzio. The sheer ridiculousness of how far anyone will go for love brings out shining performances from the admittedly varied cast.

Evolution factor is HIGH. A lighthearted farce set against the backdrop of Venice in the 1700's is great fun for history enthusiasts, and there are still a lot of them out there. Its comedic factor alone is worth the DVD buy. Try to catch this one if you can.