Casanova: Synopsis

1700s Venice -- He was the legendary adventurer whose amorous dalliances would go on to inspire countless lovers throughout the centuries. She was the most virtuoso writer of her time who was waiting to find that rare man with a true understanding of steadfastness and passion. When Giacomo Casanova (Heath Ledger) discovered Francesca Bruni (Sienna Miller), he met his ultimate romantic match, succumbing to the only woman ever to refuse his charms...until he could prove himself to be the one man worthy of her romantic ideals.

With CASANOVA, Academy Award nominated director Lasse Hallström (“The Cider House Rules,” “Chocolat”) creates a sharp, sophisticated modern comedy from the longrunning legend of Giacomo Casanova, the Renaissance-era spy, soldier, writer, philosopher and adventurer who became famed as a notorious lover of women. Though Casanova’s life and loves have been explored in dozens of screen incarnations, he has never been seen in so essentially human a predicament: befuddled by his stolen heart and trying to become a better man in his own clever fashion. The film is at once the director’s most delightfully romantic and comedic work to date -- as well as a playful exploration into the timeless conflicts between repression and sensuality, disguises and identity, desire and love.

Key to the vision for the film was creating a Casanova with a contemporary edge: youthful, accessible and emotionally true-to-life. Running away with this imaginative concept, the film’s screenwriters bring forth a very different view of Casanova’s myth. Here, Casanova is not only a dashing rebel and wit, but also a vulnerable man who is chasing after love as Bishop Pucci (Academy Award winner Jeremy Irons) of the Inquisition chases after him. Caught up in a comic whirl of disguises, duels, deceit and love-struck desire, Casanova begins to see the vital difference between the allure of conquest and the power of true love.