Article contributed by Victoria Hock
Director: Steven K. Tsuchida
Writer: Eirene Donohue
Starring: Rachel Leigh Cook, Scott Ly, Ben Feldman, Missi Pyle
A Tourist’s Guide to Love tells the story of Amanda (Rachel Leigh Cook), a travel agent who is sent to Vietnam by her boss Mona (Missi Pyle) undercover to check out a local tour company that her company is considering purchasing. This comes after her boyfriend, John (Ben Feldman), tells her that he wants to “take a break” so he can take a job in Ohio, much to Amanda’s surprise. While in Vietnam, she meets Sinh (Scott Ly), the group’s tour guide, and they end up developing romantic feelings for each other.
Scott and Ly are standouts in this film, bringing depth in their own unique ways to their roles. As Amanda, Scott starts out being almost completely focused on determining if the company is a good fit, but eventually is able to also enjoy her time in Vietnam. As Sinh, Ly balances romance and being a leader well, but is also able to be the voice of reason when needed. Their chemistry was also clear from their first meeting, and evident throughout the film.
Pyle and Feldman both do fine in their respective roles, with Pyle as Mona balancing being a boss and friend well. As John, Feldman does well with the material he was given, but his role unfortunately has a rather predictable character arc.
The film also boasts a decent-sized supporting cast, particularly in the Vietnam tour group. This includes Glynn Sweet and Alexa Povah as Brian and Maya Conway, respectively, Jacqueline Correa as Sam Gonville, Nondumiso Tembe as Dom Fisher, Morgan Dudley as Robin, Andrew Barth Feldman as Alex, and Quinn Trúc Trán as Anh, to name just a few. Trán is a standout as the upbeat Anh, who is Sinh’s cousin. The rest of the cast also did well overall in their respective roles. However, I found myself wanting to know more about them. Their roles lacked the same depth as Cook’s and Ly’s, and I would have liked to have seen at least some of them develop a little more.
The middle portion is another strength of this film. It is paced well, and while it did have some predictable elements, it did a good job of keeping my attention, and highlighting the wonderful scenery of Vietnam. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for the beginning and end of this film, both of which I found to be very predictable. The beginning was also slow-paced, even bordering on cheesy at times.
With that being said, I did enjoy that this movie contained elements of a standard romance movie and added to it. With a robust supporting cast, and a unique location choice, it made for a familiar yet different experience, which I particularly appreciated as someone who often watches films in this genre.
Overall, despite a few issues, this was still an enjoyable film to watch overall. Those who enjoy romance movies, or enjoy them but are looking for something a little different likely won’t be disappointed.
