Language: English (British)
Genre: Romantic, Chick flick
Cast: Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant, Alec Baldwin in a guest appearance
Reasons to Watch: Grant and Roberts at their best, Wonderful dialogues with deeper meanings and Picturesque shots of Britain (and London in general)
Reasons not to: Another romantic comedy with a run-of-the-mill ending.
Director: Roger Michell
Music: Befitting of a romantic flick, so you have Boyzone, 98 Degrees, Bill Withers and Lighthouse Family coming together, the background score is humdrum though
Storyline: William Thacker (Hugh Grant) is forgettable travel book shop owner in Notting Hill whose life is changed when one day Anna Scott(Julia Roberts), a Hollywood superstar, walks into his store. Moments later, he bumps into her again this time managing to spill juice on her. Fortunately his apartment is just across the street and (strangely enough for a superstar) she agrees to go there and change. What follows is a kiss, and months of understanding each other, interspersed with the confrontations with the paparazzi, secret love affairs of the rich and the famous, quirkiness and flexible rigidity of the ordinary class and all the ingredients of a fairy tale. The end is as you’d expect a fairy tale to end, but the dialogues keep coming on and off in every sequence possible. This is one rags weds riches story which deserves a pat on the back for the ambience, for what stands out in Notting Hill, is Notting Hill itself.
Climax Handling: Climax is Priyadarshan-ish in nature, but excellently handled and intermingled with the right emotions and the right amount of expressions, all with a Feel-good factor to it!
Points: A visual treat, with some food for thought, with excellent performances from even the smallest of characters
Overall Rating: 8.5/10
Comment: Watch it in the Valentine Week, or with your better half (and please.. if you manage.. pay some attention to the dialogues…)
