Review: Notting Hill

There's an unexpectedly poignant shot in the midst of Notting Hill: a man named William and a woman named Anna are walking in the night and have trespassed into a garden. She notices a bench which is inscribed with a lover's sentiment and she is moved by it. As she goes to sit on the bench, the camera rises further and further away and William walks a bit to let her have her privacy. It is moving because the woman is no ordinary Anna -- she is Anna Scott, the biggest female movie star in the world, and she is never alone.

Anna Scott is portrayed by Julia Roberts, the biggest female movie star in the world, but don't for a moment think this is purely autobiographical. If there's anything we should glean from watching Anna Scott the Celebrity -- and this is not a new thought -- is that while most of us aspire to put celebrities on a pedestal, most celebrities aspire to remain mortal. Celebrities, as we know, are besieged by paparazzi and reporters and camera crews. We know this because we saw Brad and Gwyneth, pre-breakup, walking around nude in some remote getaway hotel, we see Sharon Stone working the carpet at her latest premiere, we see Leonardo DiCaprio wearing a baseball cap, trying to go incognito at some international airport. We read the gossip columns and the tabloids, we watch Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood and E! What's truly ironic is that we know how truly invasive the media is but I doubt that we ever truly understand how valuable privacy is until we find ourselves deprived of it.

Anyway, that's not the entire point of Notting Hill but it is the wedge that keeps our lovers apart. William Thacker (Hugh Grant) is just an ordinary bookseller in Notting Hill, London. One day, Anna walks into his shop. After a few run-ins, spills and misunderstandings, they attempt a romance but William can't quite assimilate to her world and it's near impossible for her to blend into his though both give it valiant tries. Anna, with years of fame behind her, wonders if it's her image William has fallen for. She cites a famous line Rita Hayworth uttered to prove her point: "They go to bed with Gilda and they wake up with me." Roberts openly admits to opposing this line and it's understandable -- there are already so many parallels between her and Anna that audiences may believe it is Roberts herself speaking those words.

There's so much to savor in this sparkling romantic dramedy, brought to you by director Roger Michell and screenwriter Richard Curtis. Curtis, who was responsible for the frothy, similarly plotted Four Weddings and a Funeral, pens some riotous sequences, namely a press junket William inadvertently finds himself included in. It may be a bit of an inside joke for those not familiar with the junket world but what the hell -- did everyone watching Wag the Dog know Dustin Hoffman was channeling producer Robert Evans?

Of the strong supporting cast, Rhys Ifans is a standout as William's flatmate Spike, a bloke who looks as if he hasn't bathed or run a comb through his hair. He is blissfully oblivious to all that goes on and it's quite a shock to reconcile this lovable oaf to the romantic suitor Ifans portrayed in Dancing at Lughnasa. Ifans is a consistent delight.

As for our star duo, they share an appealing warmth with one another. They don't fully spark but they are such magnetic performers individually that they make it work -- you do root for them to be together although her celebrity makes this increasingly difficult. Roberts, though restrained, delivers her most confident performance to date -- she is both reluctant romantic and whiplash bitch. Grant reminds us why we fell in love with him in the first place -- that shy-boy charm and throwaway wit are in full force here.

My only disagreement with the film is its ending. It is a perfectly acceptable ending actually -- like the film, it is clever and smile-inducing -- but it's more Four Weddings and a Funeral than Notting Hill. I know bittersweet endings are all but banned in Hollywood but I wish they had ended it as Anna leaves the bookstore. Her words would have touched: "I'm just a girl standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her."

Notting Hill

Directed by: Roger Michell

Written by: Richard Curtis

Starring: Julia Roberts, Hugh Grant, Rhys Ifans, Gina McKee, Emma Chambers, Hugh Bonneville, Dylan Moran, Tim McInnerny, James Dreyfus, Emily Mortimer, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Mischa Barton, Samuel West