I'm a sucker for a romcom, but i have to be honest: this one blows. The lead is a (bad) Hugh Grant clone, the acting overall barely registers and the script was telephoned in over a bad line. Fair play to the village community, they put their heart into it, but that's not enough. There's no depth to the characterisation, the pacing is glacial, the direction is clunky and the chemistry between the leads is inert. At times it feels as though it wants to be a kind of 'Under Milkwood', by giving the supporting roles an element of rustic passion (some of the bit-part characters seemed to be based on Dylan Thomas's villagers - there's even a Mr. & Mrs. Pugh-type couple) but nothing ever comes of it. I wanted it to be good, i really did, for the villagers' sake, but it took the worst of every romcom and shone a bright light on it. Sorry folks, but no. Just no.
Review of Tortoise in Love
