Movie Review: A Five Star Life. Plus, a Bit More on My Birthday

I experienced just a bit of bad luck on my birthday so I ended up enjoying my evening alone. Luckily, the universe was kind, sometime that day, Jennifer from The Daily Connoisseur posted a foreign film that she was looking forward to and a link to its trailer on facebook. This movie entitled A Five Star Life was in Italian with English subtitles. Always up to embrace a theme, I thought the rental would go nicely with my Italian dinner (the delicious Mom’s Lasagna from Maggiano’s that you order at lunch to take home plus a glass of my signature Bolla Chianti of course). I enjoyed the movie and it turned out to be a lovely evening overall.

I watched this over a month ago, so I will try my best to give it a quality review.

This film was about a woman who meticulously reviewed luxury hotels around the world as a secret shopper. So busy, she did not have a family of her own at home. It simply didn’t get to her as much as it did others! She was confronted about her glamorous yet nonconformist life choices by her sister who had a young family. Her ex who was dealing with relationship(s) also prompted her to analyze her life a bit. I loved that her brief meeting with another woman who valued authenticity and lived life to the fullest was the one who really got her thinking.

I relished observing this chic main character! The actress’ name is Margherita Buy. Absolutely lovely, she was a beautiful woman of a certain age whose clothing fit perfectly. The background, the five-star hotels, were also stunning. As a traveler, I wish that the viewer saw more of each locale though. However, simply focusing on the luxury hotels adds to the film’s message.

Not a whole lot happened in this movie. Instead, it captured real life. I think I see this more in foreign films than I do ones produced domestically. It reminded me of The Lunchbox from India which Jennifer also highly recommended. I also thought the plot was similar to Up in the Air, an American movie with George Clooney. From the reviews, others thought so too.

I highly recommend this movie for its simplicity, beauty and honesty. …and for being Italian! If I were hosting a movie night and my guest(s) were up for a foreign film, this would definitely be in the running.

I had a wonderful birthday last month. You guys know all about my shopping spree, my trip to see the cherry blossoms, and that I received red roses and two-tone tulips, but I also wined and dined both in and out with friends and family. I felt very loved. I enjoyed the time I took off from work, which included activities such as cooking and baking. For example, I savored a brookie while watching this movie.

This is my birthday cake, the Chocolate Marquis which is layers of chocolate mousse and cake covered with ganache from a favorite bakery, I shared with family and my brother’s girlfriend’s family at Easter…