A Casanova is to 18th-century Venice what a player is to 21st-century America, and Casanova, for all its pageantry and taste for fluffy wigs and puffy dresses, reads like any number of modern-day romantic comedies. By minute 23 or so, the film has painted itself into such a big-budget Hollywood story arc corner that you know exactly how the ending will (and essentially has to) play out. Fortunately, Casanova isn’t about its derivative script so much as the dopey, delightful characters that continually and cheerfully pull it away from the realm of formulaic disaster. Heath Ledger makes for a good title character, and Sienna Miller is a charming foil, but equal if not more credit goes to the surrounding cast (Lena Olin, Jeremy Irons and most especially Oliver Platt) for giving us some fun sights to see on the way to a predictable destination. Extras: Director commentary, extended scene, three behind-the-scenes features.

Grade: B+