Jim and I don’t usually do anything fancy for Valentine’s Day. We never have. He usually sends me roses, but we’ve been married a long time, so there’s no need for grand gestures. He knows I’m not going anywhere and I know the same.
For some reason this year, we did some planning. I said I would make a nice dinner on Valentine’s Day, and we’d have a quiet evening at home. He suggested we go to a movie the night before, so I started looking on the Cinemark app, as this is the only major movie theater chain where we live.
We considered seeing the 2026 Wuthering Heights, with Margot Robbie and Jacob Eldridge, but I read that it significantly departs from previous versions by removing the second half of the book. That’s like someone watching the Wicked musical or movie and thinking they read the book. Nope.
We don’t like action or anime movies, and our local Cinemark shows plenty of those. I almost gave in to Wuthering Heights, when I saw a listing for a movie called Solo Mio. The description read, “A wedding disaster leaves the groom stranded in Rome, heartbroken in the world’s happiest city.” It also stated that sometimes heartbreak is just the first chapter of a better story. It seemed like this movie would tell the story of someone who met misfortune, but who came out of it pretty okay in the end. I thought this movie held promise, but I didn’t expect it to be so heartwarming and funny.
A movie set in Rome is relatable for us, because we spent a couple of weeks motoring around Italy in 2011. Also, Jim’s almost 100% Italian, so the setting would both bring back memories and would offer cultural touchpoints. The movie overdelivered in those two areas. We loved seeing the Trevi Fountain again, the ancient narrow streets, and Tuscany vineyards. Also, the medieval city of Siena played a role. We had learned about the famous and dangerous Palio horse race that takes place twice a year in Siena’s main square, but we had never seen it until this movie.
Okay, let’s talk about the storyline of the movie. The opening features a montage of Matt and Heather’s courtship, the proposal at the school where they both teach, and then Matt (Kevin James) standing alone at the altar in the lovely Church of Santa Maria di Loreto in Rome, all of this accompanied by Ed Sheeran’s “Photograph.” Matt is a big fan, and this music choice is the only concession Heather allowed in the wedding planning.
The couple had purchased an expensive honeymoon package that was non-refundable, and the hotel clerk encourages Matt to follow through with his itinerary, which he does. This looks odd to the other people on the tour, particularly two couples, who at first are suspicious of him, but who grow to like him after they learn his sad story. The introduction of these wacky characters introduces much-welcome levity to the tragic story.
One day, Matt wanders around the hotel neighborhood and joins in street play with some urchins before heading into a coffee shop. A pretty woman behind the counter rushes outside and reclaims his wallet from the boys. She tells Matt that the boys weren’t really playing with him. This is Gia (Nicole Grimaudo) who soon takes Matt’s mind off his unfortunate circumstances. She shows him around the city and in one location, she waves to a young girl whom I recognized immediately as Virginia Bocelli, the tenor Andrea’s daughter. Was this just a quick cameo?
Matt invites Gia to accompany him on a tour of Tuscany, and along the way, she invites Matt and the other two couples to her uncle’s villa, where a large family gathering is happening. Who is the uncle? Andrea Bocelli, of course. Virginia is there, too. These scenes were filmed at Bocelli’s own villa and vineyard. We are treated to performances by Andrea and his daughter, Virginia, and even a Puccini duet between Matt and Andrea. When Gia, who was in the “boy loses girl phase, hears them singing, it softens her heart toward Matt.
I’m not sure that the cameos of the Bocelli family resonated with the other audience members as much as they did for Jim and me, but we are fans, so it was a delightful surprise for us to see them.
Kevin James does a great job of playing the sad sack and Nicole Grimaudo delivers some great one-liners. The storyline follows the standard plot boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl again. It’s okay though, because although there is some predictability, there are also delightful plot twists. Ed Sheeran also makes a cameo appearance when Matt invites Gia to the concert he was supposed to attend with the woman who should have been his wife by then.
That’s all I’ll say about the movie for now, because I don’t want to spoil the movie for you, and I’d like to segue to the theater experience. When I chose our seats online, it looked like we’d be the only people in the theater. Well, a lot of people bought tickets after us, and for the first time in a long time, the theater was almost full. I actually had someone sitting in the seat next to me. Perhaps the great attendance can be attributed to Valentine’s Day, but there weren’t that many couples there.
During the movie, it was apparent that the audience was enjoying the show, and I think I was laughing more than anyone else. I was surprised that at the end of the movie, the crowd applauded. I haven’t observed that in a very long time. Where I had been a little skeptical about how our movie night would play out, I’d say the choice of Solo Mio was a Valentine’s Day win.