Monte Carlo (PG)
IMDb; Regency; Rotten Tomatoes; TV Tropes; Wikipedia
streaming sites: Amazon; Fandango; Hulu; Movies Anywhere; YouTube

This movie came out in 2011, but I didn't see it until 2025. It's loosely based on the 2001 book "Headhunters", by Jules Bass (of Rankin/Bass fame), which I haven't read. Some may call it a romantic comedy, but while there is romance in the movie, I don't see that as a primary plot element, so I've just filed my review under "comedy". For much of the movie, I wasn't sure how much I liked it. It just seemed sort of okay, but I wasn't terribly into it. But after awhile, I did get into it, at least somewhat. By the end, I was thinking I might rate it two whole smileys, but upon reflection I went with one and three quarters. Which isn't bad, but it's certainly not great. I did enjoy the movie well enough, though, and I'm glad I watched it. I probably wouldn't have watched it if not for the fact that I was already familiar with the three lead actors.

Selena Gomez plays an 18-year-old waitress and high school student from Texas, named Grace. Her best friend is her coworker, a high school dropout named Emma (Katie Cassidy, who I know from Arrow). The two of them have long been planning on going to Paris, France, after Grace graduates, which happens at the start of the movie. Grace's stepfather insists that her older stepsister, Meg (Leighton Meester), goes with them, for sisterly bonding, though Meg doesn't really get along with either Grace or Emma. So none of the three are particularly happy about the arrangement. Also, Emma's boyfriend Owen (Cory Monteith, from Glee) is apprehensive about her going to Paris, fearing he'll lose her. So he proposes to her, but even though it seems like she wants to marry him, she's upset about the timing.

Well, it turns out the sightseeing tour Grace had booked for them isn't very good. They're always in too much of a rush to really appreciate any of the sights, and their hotel room is pretty cramped. Then, while visiting the Eiffel Tower, Meg meets an Australian guy named Riley, very briefly. Before they can really talk to each other, the three young women realize their bus is about to leave, so they rush down the stairs to catch it, but they miss it. As they walk back to their hotel in the rain, they stop at a much more lavish hotel. It turns out there's a spoiled British heiress named Cordelia, who's supposed to stay there for the night, but changes her mind. She happens to look exactly like Grace (because she's also played by Gomez), and the hotel staff mistake Grace for Cordelia. So she and her friends spend the night in Cordelia's hotel room, and the next day a car arrives for Cordelia, which they get a ride in. They discover Cordelia was supposed to go to Monte Carlo, on a private jet, and they go in her place.

They stay at another lavish hotel, where they meet Theo, the son of a man who's hosting a charity auction where Cordelia is supposed to donate a very valuable necklace (which was in her luggage, which the three women now have possession of). Grace wants to make sure the necklace gets auctioned off as it's supposed to, and since it doesn't seem like Cordelia has any interest in attending, she spends the week continuing to pretend to be Cordelia. Meanwhile, she gets to know Theo, and the two of them get closer, though Grace worries he'll hate her if he learns the truth about her. Also, Riley shows up in Monte Carlo, as he's traveling the world, so he and Meg get to spend time together. Emma goes on a date with some random prince, who turns out to be a snob, so she gains a greater appreciation for what she had with Owen. And Owen decides to go to Paris to apologize to Emma. He eventually sees a newspaper that has a picture of Grace, Emma, and Meg, so he learns they're in Monte Carlo, and goes there to find Emma. Grace also has to fool Cordelia's aunt, Alicia (Catherine Tate, who I know from Doctor Who), who is in Monte Carlo to check up on Cordelia.

And I guess that's all I want to reveal of the plot, except to say that it has a pretty happy ending for all three leads. The movie is somewhat formulaic, but I also found it reasonably amusing and kind of charming. And I liked the main characters, and it was nice to see Meg and Grace get closer as sisters, as well as Meg and Emma making amends, after much bickering. The movie is silly, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. All in all, I thought it was kind of a fun diversion, even if it probably won't be very memorable, in the long run.