daily stream: happy optimism and fabulous food to rebuild your life
2003’s *Under the Tuscan Sun* is on Prime in the US, Disney+ in the UK, and other services, too
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For the next few days, I’ll help you blunt the January blues with movies that give off positive vibes about new beginnings and fresh starts.
Today: 2003’s Under the Tuscan Sun. When Diane Lane’s San Francisco writer gets blindsided by the utterly unexpected collapse of her marriage, she heads off to Italy for a restorative vacation… only to buy a fixer-upper villa on a lark and stay in Tuscany to spend a year renovating it. The financial fantasy of it all aside, this is a wonderfully down-to-earth tale of a woman realistic enough for us mere mortals to recognize ourselves in her. Lane’s grounded dignity creates a plausible and overwhelming emotional core to the delicate brick-by-brick creation of her new life. The movie’s happy optimism, fields of sunflowers, and fabulous food are a welcome distraction from January, too.
US: rent/buy on Prime and Apple TV
UK: stream on Disney+; rent/buy on Prime and Apple TV
See Under the Tuscan Sun at Letterboxd for more viewing options.
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