There's a good deal of sighing and dallying between idyllic rivers and ancient fountains before the young lovers here unite in a fairytale ending. And that's not giving away too much of the plot in what amounts to the equivalent of a Mills and Boon tale for the big screen. Perennial English rose Helena Bonham Carter brings her trademark old-fashioned innocence to the role of a 17-year-old prima donna in a troupe of travelling actors who is wooed by a chap who dons a series of masks when his initial advances are rebuffed. She falls head over heels for the mystery man, but does he have the courage to emerge from behind the mask? A first feature film from Italian TV director Fiorella Infascelli, this highbrow fable about play-acting both in and out of the theatre gets a lot of mileage from atmospheric settings which evoke Venice without actually going there.


©ipc tx. Film content from TVTimes