Director: Roger Michell
Notting Hill is a lovely, clean romantic comedy film with a somewhat fairy tale plot. One of the cutest films I have ever seen, in my opinion. The story begins at a small bookstore in Notting Hill, whose owner is William Thacker, a shy good guy. One fine morning, something happens out of the blue at the bookstore. A famous Hollywood star, Anna Scot, comes to the bookstore out of nothing. The first meet-cute scene, between Thacker and Anna, takes place. As expected Thacker was unable to speak properly in front of Anna and Anna with the sunglasses was calm and beautiful as well. There was something in the air of the bookstore, the tranquil look of Anna and the mumbling Thacker, the scene from where the actual ‘Notting Hill’ begins.
After a little conversation, Anna left the store, but not from the movie! The second meet-cute scene between Anna and William happens accidentally near the bookstore, which leads Anna to the nearby apartment of Thacker. There Thacker was trying to flirt with Anna in a way of a good-guy vibe, there was tension between them. Anna, no doubt, started to feel something and I guess no need to tell about Thacker. Before leaving, near the door, Anna kisses Thacker, tells him where they could meet next.
Falling in love is something like a quality not everyone owns. Have I had to mention that Anna falls in love with Thacker and so does Thacker with Anna?
The third meet-cute scene was in the interview. There Thacker had to pretend a journalist to meet with Anna. He gave flowers to Anna, which was not actually for her grandma who was not actually in the nearby hospital! This scene from here is kind of my favorite where Thacker says to Anna-
“I am a complete Moron, I apologize. This is very weird, It’s the sort of thing that happens in dreams, not in real life. I mean good dreams, It’s a. It’s a dream, in fact, to see you again.” And Anna said, “ What happens next in the dream?”
What happens next is surreal! Anna goes on her first date with William at his sister’s birthday party, they walk along the street, they climb over a wall to enter into the mysterious communal garden!
To a certain extent, Anna is a complex character. She is a famous Hollywood actress and falls in love with a guy who owns a bookstore. Now she is going to face some complexity for sure! Will she be able to face it well or she will mess it up? How will be the ending of this fairy tale?
The plot of Notting Hill, especially the last press scene kind of reminds me of the movie ‘Roman Holiday’. Julia Roberts was perfect for the role of Anna Scott, couldn’t think of anyone except her as Anna. Hugh Grant as William Thacker was amazing. The characters Spike and Honey were a comedy!
ONE MORE THING, The cover version of “She” sung by Elvis Costello went perfectly with Anna Scott in this movie, and “When You Say Nothing At All” by Ronan Keating was good too.
Let’s end this up with a dialogue by Anna to William-