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When in Rome starts by introducing us to Beth (Bell) a young and determined curator of art at the famed Guggenheim museum in New York. Beth is purely focused on her career and is completely unlucky when in comes to relationships. Beth’s sister on the other hand has just met the man of her dreams and is getting married after just two weeks. The wedding is taking place in Rome and Beth is the maid of honor. Enter Nick(Duhamel) the best man, Beth and Nick start to develop some chemistry at the wedding reception but then Beth spots him with another woman just as she was about to make her move. Now Beth is a little upset and with the help of some fine Champagne she decides to go for a walk in the famous “fountain of love” where would be lover’s loss in a coin hoping for the best. Beth decides to take 5 coins out of the fountain thus the 5 men who through those coins into the fountain are under a curse and must pursue her to the ends of the earth. Now as Nick attempts to start a relationship with Beth back in NYC she must find out if it is real or weather one of the five coins belonged to him.
This movie gets off on the wrong foot; the very first scene puts Bell in the middle of three other actors who are just completely lost. When a movie starts with type of poor display of acting you know you are in for a long night. And even though the movie is only 90 minutes long it seems like as long as the plane rides to Rome and back.
Most romantic comedies are not known for having a strong plot, but this one takes the cake. The plot is so far fetched and the script is filled with over-used and underwhelming rom-com clichés. While the viewer will laugh from time to time it was far too infrequent for this viewer. There are good romantic comedies out there but far too often we are subjected to this type of drivel.
Overall, When in Rome is a bottom tier romantic comedy, you can count on a few laughs but you can see those in the trailer. It is too bad because in Bell and Duhamel you have talented stars and they are surrounded by a talented supporting cast. The lack of any type of reasonable plot or any type of inspired direction makes this movie a must-miss. I give When in Rome 1½ stars out of 5. | 