‘Solo Mio’ Review: Kevin James Is Ripe for Romance in Rome

No grand romantic gesture goes unpunished. It isn’t a saying but perhaps it should be if we take a cue from the start of the PG-rated romantic comedy “Solo Mio” — starring Kevin James. James’s Matt is a fourth-grade art teacher, smitten with Heather (Julie Ann Emery), a fellow teacher. A video montage, scored to Ed Sheeran’s sentimental ballad “Perfect,” depicts their courtship. For all the celebratory footage of the happy couple, ending with a clever proposal, things aren’t, well, perfect. Heather says “yes” — to the dress, the nuptials in Rome, a future with Matt — but as the groom stands at the altar, a grin waning beneath his trim beard, the double doors of an ancient chapel swing open…to niente.

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Just in time for Valentine’s Day, “Solo Mio,” a title that teases Matt’s misunderstanding of the Italian phrase, follows this wounded soul as he is forced by non-refundable policies to make the most of the numerous honeymoon specials he booked. The first affront might be the beckoning bed strewn with red rose petals. The tandem bike tour of the Eternal City with other lovebirds — awkward — comes in a close second.

The hotel concierge Marcello is understanding of Matt’s situation but isn’t going to bend. Portrayed with warmth by Alessandro Carbonara, this sympathetic stickler recalls Hector Elizondo’s fixer role in “Pretty Woman.” He’s a kindly and rooting for Matt. So, he encourages Matt to make the most of the city. (Cinematographer Jared Fadel does, with a color palette that beckons prettier than a postcard.) He’s not the only one to nudge Matt to partake of the amazing setting. A brazenly flirtatious bar patron tells the drunken sad sack, “Look around, Roma’s beauty is here for you. Don’t let your heart close your eyes to it.”

Although he’d rather be alone, Matt’s adopted by two couples following the honeymoon-package itinerary. Julian and Meghan (Kim Coates and Alyson Hannigan) and Neil and Donna (Jonathan Roumie and Julie Cerda) bicker enough in their own peculiar ways to have Matt questioning why his near-perfect relationship to Heather is the one that didn’t make it to the “I dos.” Julian and Neil take to goading and championing the understandably hangdog Matt.

The directing brothers Charles and Daniel Kinnane have worked with James before (“Home Team”) and know what they have in the ridiculously amiable star. They also know there’s more, if not depth, soulfulness to his talents. In the place of pratfalls, they’ve found a kind of sheepish charm and hurt.

And it’s tricky for a script (this one’s by James, and two more Kinnane bros, Patrick and John) to build a budding romance upon the recent “love of one’s life” wreckage without raising reasonable qualms about the quality of Matt’s heartbreak. Enter Gia (Nicole Grimaudo), the owner of a café near Matt’s hotel who sees the hapless tourist get pickpocketed and rescues him.

As fine as the ensemble is — and a cameo quasar shines late in the film — Grimaudo turns out to be the special red sauce in “Solo Mio.” With her wide smile, fractured English, and grown-up grasp of the world, Gia’s a beacon for the emotionally listing Matt. While the timing seems suspect and a bit hurried, the Italian veteran actor and James make their characters’ connection feel inevitable.

Of course, the genre dictates that a seemingly sure thing be vexed, and this rom-com is no different. In keeping with the travel tease of the film, its couples — including the presumptive one — head north to Siena and Gia’s family’s home.

There’s a lot of wow factor in these scenes — her family owns a racehorse for heaven’s sake — but is it much different than Dakota Johnson’s Lucy in “Materialists” wandering into Harry’s HNWI digs?

Which brings us to the quandaries of taste, temperament and genre. Some like their rom-coms aching or itching with desire. Others are content to celebrate the affectionate spark. This PG valentine from Angel Studios — the company has yet to make an R-rated anything — is very much the latter. And there’s nothing wrong with that and lot of easy sweetness to “Solo Mio.”