15
MINUTES
(New Line
Cinema)
* *
Rated: R
Warnings:
Strong Language, Graphic Violence, Gore, Nudity, Sexual References, Adult
Themes
Starring:
Robert DeNiro, Edward Burns, Kelsey Grammer, Melina Kanakaredes, Avery
Brooks, Karel Roden, Oleg Taktarov.
New
York City is terrorized by a couple of Eastern Europeans with a penchant for
murder and chaos who video tape all their crimes.
Written
and directed by John Herzfeld.
I
sure was glad that everyone knew their moves and their lines in this movie, it's
just too bad they all acted like they didn't care about being there. Every
scene seemed like drudgery for the entire cast, with the exception of the two
villains - in the beginning anyway. By the end, even they didn't seem to
care anymore.
DeNiro,
as a celeb NY cop, doesn't seem to have his usual spark in the tough guy
role, maybe he's getting tired of playing them. But his role seems minor
in comparison to the role, arson investigator, played by Edward Burns.
Burns is good, but seems to be in over his head in more ways than one.
A
surprise for some viewers, is the role of the sleazy tv tabloid journalist
played by Kelsey Grammer - Hey, Frasier he ain't.
GET OVER
IT!
(Miramax)
* 1/2
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Violence, Partial Nudity, Brief Sexual Situations, Adult Themes
Starring:
Ben Foster, Kirsten Dunst, Shane West, Colin Hanks, Swoosie Kurtz, Ed
Begley Jr., Martin Short
After
getting dumped, a high school basketball player auditions for the school play in
hopes of winning his girlfriend back - with the assistance of his best friends
little sister, who he's just realized isn't so little anymore.
Some
pretty funny situations and the premis is good but the execution is seriously
lacking.
Kirsten
Dunst is once again risking being typecast as the cutesy high school sweetie.
At least this time she's not such an airhead.
All
the acting is extremely overdone. Gags are played out way too long.
There's really no one in the entire movie that the audience will like or
feel sympathetic towards.
The
high school production "A Midsummer Night's Rockin' Eve" is laughable
at best, but really fits in this movie because it would feel severely out of
place if it actually turned out to be any good.
STILL PLAYING IN
THEATRES
(alphabetically)
ALL THE
PRETTY HORSES (Miramax)
* * * 1/2
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Violence, Mild Gore, Partial Nudity, Mild Sexual
Situations, Adult Themes
Starring:
Matt Damon, Penelope Cruz, Henry Thomas, Ruben Blades, Lukas Black, Sam
Shepard, Bruce Dern
Set
in the 1940's, a young Texan travels across the border into Mexico to find work
as a ranch hand, only to fall in love with the owner's daughter and get into
trouble with the law.
Based
on the 1992 novel by Cormac McCarthy.
The
story (directed by Billy Bob Thornton), rambles along at a nice, slow gait, but
never once loses your attention.
Filmed
on location at Gallagher Headquarters Ranch in San Antonio (Texas), the
cinematography is just outstanding. Lots of wide-open, uncluttered, quiet
vistas. Very fitting for the time frame the movie captures.
This
is the type of movie I could envision that Robert Redford would have made in his
younger days.
BEST IN
SHOW
* * *
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Moderate Language, Mild Violence, Sexual References, Adult Themes
Starring:
Parker Posey, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Christopher Guest, Michael
McKean, Fred Willard, Ed Begley Jr, Larry Miller, Bob Balaban
Follows
5 hopefuls and their owners/handlers as they prepare to participate in the
pinnacle of dog shows, The 125th Annual Mayflower Kennel Club Dog Show.
Directed
by Christopher Guest from a screenplay he co-wrote with Eugene Levy. In
this mock documentary, Guest captures the idiosyncrasies and neurotic tendencies
of some pretty extreme individuals with hilarious results. He does for dog
shows what he did for community theatre with WAITING FOR GUFFMAN.
Each
of the 5 spotlighted dogs and their people are an extreme, from the neurotic
preppies and their psychoanalyzed Weimeraner to the gool ole' boy and his
Bloodhound. All delightful and full of funny moments.
One
of the funniest characters is the play by play commentator, Fred Willard, who
not only knows nothing about dogs but also shows his extreme lacking in many
other conversational people skills as well.
Whether
you're a dog person or not, this small gem is a hit.
CAST AWAY
(20th Century Fox)
* * * *
Rated: PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Violence, Some Gore, Partial Nudity, Adult Themes
Starring: Tom
Hanks, Helen Hunt
A
Fed-Ex employee is the sole survivor of a plane crash at sea and finds himself
stranded on an uninhabited island in the South Pacific.
In
essence, this is a story about a man who's entire life was ruled by time and the
fact that there wasn't enough of it who suddenly finds himself in a situation
where all he has is time.
The
plane crash scene is the most vivid and frightening I've seen depicted on film.
The
majority of the movie is just Hanks alone on the island. There's at least
an hour and a half where there's no dialogue, no music, nothing. Just a
solitary man trying to survive the elements and the isolation.
Tom
Hanks is, as always, an incredible actor and this is yet another Oscar worthy
performance.
CHOCOLAT
(Miramax)
* * * *
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Moderate Violence, Partial Nudity, Mild Sexual Situations, Adult
Themes
Starring:
Juliette Binoche, Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Alfred Molina, Lena Olin,
Carrie-Anne Moss, Peter Stormare, Leslie Caron
The
tranquility of a small staid French village is seriously disrupted when a
mysterious woman and her daughter come to town and set up a chocolate shop
during Lent.
"One
winter day, a sly wind blew in from the north" and brought a wonderfully
delicious and heartwarming story to the screen. The story is small and
intimate. The dialogue is quietly melodic and the pace is deliberately
gentle. Sure to melt in your mouth, this is a true gem of a motion
picture.
Nominated
for 5 Academy Awards, including Best Actress (Juliette Binoche), Best Supporting
Actress (Judi Dench) and Best Picture.
CROUCHING
TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON
(Sony Classics)
* * * *
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Violence, Partial Nudity, Mild Sexual Situations, Adult Themes
Starring:
Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi, Chang Chen
Master
Li, growing tired of a wudan warrior's life, asks his friend Shu Lien to deliver
his infamous Green Destiny Sword to a mutual acquaintance in Peking. Upon
it's arrival, the sword is stolen by the notorious Jade Fox and her young
disciple.
Based
on a book by Wang Du Lu and directed by Ang Lee (THE ICE STORM, SENSE AND
SENSIBILITY), ...DRAGON is composed of mythic legends from China.
This
is a spectacular period piece.
The
martial arts action is intense, choreographed by Yeun Wo Ping.
The
characters "fly" up and over walls and across water as easy as you and
I breathe. Filming these sequences wasn't so easy for the stars as they
were hoisted into a harnass and suspended by cables dangling from atop large
industrial cranes for hours at a time.
The
cinematography is exquisite. The scenery is breathtaking. Subtitled
- The dialogue is spoken in Mandarin Chinese.
Nominated
for 10 Academy Awards, including Best Director (Ang Lee), Best Foreign Film
(Taiwan) and Best Picture.
DRACULA
2000
(Dimension)
*
Rated: R
Warnings:
Strong Language, Violence, Gore, Nudity, Sexual Situations, Adult Themes
Starring:
Gerard Butler, Jonny Lee Miller, Jennifer Esposito, Danny Masterson, Jeri
Ryan, Omar Epps, Christopher Plummer (Produced by Wes Craven)
A
team of thieves break into a highly guarded London antique store housing a large
silver coffin they believe contains a priceless religous relic, only to discover
enroute to New Orleans that they've unleased Dracula, the Prince of Darkness.
This
movie sure sucks all the life out of the Dracula story - it's been done to
death. The special effects are mediocre and the story is a snooze.
Then there's this whole ridiculous subplot that tries to explain that
Dracula is really Judas from biblical times. Oh please.
No
suspense, solely relies on scares induced by "creepy things" jumping
out from darkened corners.
Tries
pretty unsuccessfully to be sexy. It's not, except for previously unknown
Scottish actor Gerard Butler as Dracula (now HE's sexy). For that reason
alone, this movie receives the rating I've given it.
THE
EMPEROR'S NEW GROOVE
(Disney)
* * * 1/2
Rated: G
Starring the
Voices of: David Spade, John Goodman, Patrick Warburton, Eartha Kitt
A
pompous, egomaniacal South American emperor of a pre-Columbian kingdom finds
himself targeted for termination by his power hungry advisor and her rather
inept right hand man, but they goof and turn him into a llama instead.
This
was supposed to be another animated, grand epic style Disney musical.
Somewhere along the line, they ditched that idea. It's predominately
a non-musical (except for a couple of songs by Sting and Tom Jones) and it's
definitely a non-epic. Fact is, the story is really rather simple.
And then there's David Spade who basically just plays himself.
I
went into this absolutely positive I was going to hate this movie, that's why
I'd avoided seeing it for so long. I've never been a fan of David Spade.
Truth is, I've always detested him. Everything about him grates on
my every nerve. Unfortunately, it's really hard for me to hate a movie
that makes me laugh this much. It's totally hip and extremely funny.
THE
FAMILY MAN
(Universal)
* * 1/2
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Mild Violence, Partial Nudity, Sexual References, Adult Themes
Starring:
Nicholas Cage, Tea Leoni, Jeremy Piven, Saul Rubinek, Don Cheadle, Harve
Presnell
An
ultra-successful, power wielding Wall Street big wig wakes up Christmas morning
to find he's suddenly living the life he would have lead if only he hadn't left
his college sweetheart at the airport 13 years ago.
Basically,
this is an updated version of "IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE", though not
nearly so squeaky clean and saccharine sweet.
This
is Tea Leoni's first movie since taking a break to pursue motherhood. Not
much for her to sink her acting chops into, pretty much the only acting she does
is look starry eyed at Nicholas Cage. Almost as much acting as she'll be
doing in the film she's currently working on - JURASSIC PARK 3.
There
are a few funny moments, but mostly this is pretty dull and as far as I'm
concerned, kind of depressing.
FINDING
FORRESTER
(Columbia)
* * * *
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Mild Sexual References, Adult Themes
Starring:
Sean Connery, F Murray Abraham, Anna Paquin, Busta Rhymes, Michael Nouri,
Rob Brown
A
reclusive writer living in the Bronx, unwillingly befriends and later mentors an
African-American youth with an exceptional penchant for writing.
Directed
by Gus Van Sant (GOOD WILL HUNTING).
Moves
a little slow in the beginning but that doesn't last long.
Warmly
and intelligently written by Mike Rich. Well developed characters - you
care about them from the start. Plausible situations. No loose ends.
Connery
is as always wonderful to watch. He is a very complex individual. An
absolute SOB - gruff, abrupt, and at times downright mean - and plays it
beautifully. Why wouldn't he?
Features
newcomer Rob Brown. He originally auditioned to be an extra in the movie
in hopes of paying off an outstanding cell phone bill, and ended up starring
opposite a legend. That must have been some audition.
THE GIFT
(Paramount
Classics)
* * * 1/2
Rated: R
Warnings:
Strong Language, Violence, Gore, Nudity, Sexual Situations, Adult Themes
Stars:
Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Keanu Reeves, Greg Kinnear, Katie Holmes,
Hilary Swank, Michael Jeter, Gary Cole
A
southern woman with psychic powers becomes involved in solving the disappearance
of a young woman who may have been killed by the abusive husband of one of her
clients.
Directed
by Sam Raimi from a screenplay written by Tom Epperson and Billy Bob Thornton.
Exceptionally
written and very suspenseful story full of amazing twists and surprises.
Very
powerful performances by the entire cast but most notably by Cate Blanchett,
Giovanni Ribisi and Keanu Reeves. Anyone who thought that Keanu's acting
abilities were at all questionable would immediately have those notions
squelched upon seeing this movie - he's incredible.
There
are some really disturbing scenes, as when the psychic envisions elements of a
murder, that are hard to sit through but the story is so compelling you can't
take your eyes off the screen.
HANNIBAL
(MGM)
* * * 1/2
Rated: R
Warnings:
Language, Extreme and Graphic Violence, Gore, Sexual References, Adult
Themes
Starring:
Anthony Hopkins, Julianne Moore, Gary Oldman, Ray Liotta, Giancarlo
Giannini
Hannibal
Lecter, escaped from the asylum and living under an assumed name in
Italy, is pursued by a number of forces for a multitude of reasons ranging from
reward to revenge to recapture.
Based
on Thomas Harris' 1999 followup novel to the ultra-successful hit SILENCE OF THE
LAMBS.
Directed
by Ridley Scott (GLADIATOR), the story this time around has more romantic
overtones than grisly and murderous suspense, but don't get me wrong there's
plenty of that this time too. Scott did however, decide to change the
ending Harris had written in the novel to one a little more appetizing
for everyone involved.
Anthony
Hopkins reprises the role that won him an Oscar with his usual teasing
joviality. You can almost see him wink each time Lecter closes in on a new
victim.
The
role of FBI Special Agent Clarice Starling is now inhabited by Julianne Moore
(BOOGIE NIGHTS), who does a fair job considering the large shadow left by her
predecessor (Oscar winner Jodie Foster).
The
story doesn't quite hit the same emotional notes of SILENCE, but it's full of
chills and thrills and a few new recipes. Just don't try them at home.
THE
MEXICAN
(Dreamworks)
* * 1/2
Rated: R
Warnings:
Strong Language, Violence, Mild Gore, Sexual References, Adult Themes
Starring:
Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt, James Gandolfini, Bob Balaban
A
clumsy and reluctant mob bagman is forced to leave his demanding girlfriend
(he's being threatened with his life) and travel to Mexico to find and bring
back a legandary and priceless antique pistol known as "The Mexican".
Directed
by Gore Verbinski, most known for commercial direction (remember those Budweiser
Frogs?), takes two of Hollywoods top box office draws (Roberts and Pitt) and
spends most of the movie keeping them apart. The two stars only spend
minimal time together onscreen, and when they are together they're mostly
fighting and yelling at each other.
The
story, written by J.H.Wyman, somewhat flawed, would have been much better suited
to casting of relative unknowns or minor stars, not the likes of Roberts and
Pitt.
The
scenes with Pitt trying to track down the object of his desire (I'm talking
about the gun here) are mildly entertaining, but really lack any kind of energy.
He just schleps his way through most of the movie. Roberts'
character describes him best when she tells him "You've managed to Forrest
Gump your way through your life."
Roberts
is also mildly entertaining, that is until her character is kidnapped by a
hitman hired to "regulate the funkiness" of the situation.
The
abducter, played by Soprano's tough guy James Gandolfini, is the highlight of
the whole movie. His character is complex and charismatic. Anytime
his character isn't onscreen, that's when the movie falls flat.
MONKEYBONE
(20th Century
Fox)
1/2
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Crude Humor, Violence, Mild Gore, Sexual Situations, Adult
Themes
Starring:
Brendan Fraser, Brigit Fonda, Chris Kattan, David Foley, Whoopi Goldberg,
Rose McGowen, Giancarlo Esposito
When
an accident causes a cartoonist to slip into a coma, the animated character he
created (his alter-ego) Monkeybone, takes over his body and wreaks havoc on his
life.
Directed
by David Selick (TIM BURTON'S THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS), this is a very
dark and predominately not funny proposed journey into the inner psyche.
While
in his coma, Stu Milou (Brendan Fraser) ends up in a type of amusement park -
the limbo between life and death - where the landscape is filled with grotesque,
bizarre and extremely nightmarish images.
There
are only a few rare moments where the movie is enjoyable or even funny - for
example when Stu's soul inhabits the body of a dead gymnast with a broken neck,
laughably played by Chris Kattan (SNL fame) or when MonkeyboneStu does a bump
and grind routine singing Rick James' Brickhouse before a roomful of
museum patrons.
The
majority of the "jokes" here are sick and in very poor taste and there
are a multitude of instances that I think the PG-13 rating was really rather
lenient.
SAVE THE
LAST DANCE
(Paramount)
* * * 1/2
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Strong Language, Violence, Sexual References, Adult Themes
Starring:
Julia Stiles, Sean Patrick Thomas, Terry Kinney, Kerry Washington
Following
her mother's unexpected death, a middle class high school student with dreams of
attending Julliard is forced to move in with her estranged father, a jazz
musician, who lives in a predominately black neighborhood on the south side of
Chicago.
Directed
by Thomas Carter (METRO), this is part FAME, part FLASHDANCE, part ROMEO
& JULIET with a hip-hop beat.
The
dialogue of the kids sounds natural instead of the usual teen fare.
They don't sound too much like the adults that wrote the script, and they
are capable of carrying on conversations without the usual teen trash talk.
Where
it does tread pretty lightly over more serious inner-city issues such as race
relations and gang violence, the story takes an optimistic approach to life with
messages of starting over, second chances and reaching for your dreams.
SNATCH
(Columbia)
* * 1/2
Rated: R
Warnings:
Strong Language, Strong Violence, Gore, Nudity, Adult Themes
Starring:
Benecio Del Toro, Dennis Farina, Vinnie Jones, Brad Pitt, Rade Serbedzija,
Jason Statham
Set
against the backdrop of underground betting on illegal boxing matches in London,
the lives of two bit boxing promotors, a Russian gun dealer, pawn brokers,
contract killers, an Irish bare knuckle boxer, and diamond merchants all
converge and their goal ultimately becomes one. To get hold of the 86
carat flawless diamond without being fed to the pigs.
Directed
by Guy Ritchie (LOCK STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS).
This
is Ritchie's second feature, and again double dealings and double crosses
abound. It even stars alot of the same actors, and you guessed it, it's
basically a remake of his first film.
Ritchie's
film world is again filled with vibrant character names like Turkish, Franky
Four Fingers, Bullet Tooth Tony, Boris the Bullet Dodger, Gorgeous George and
Brick Top. Too bad we've been here before.
Like
Ritchie's previous film, the accents are extremely thick. None more so
than Brad Pitt's (one of the only Americans in the cast) who's Irish gypsy
verbage is so incoherent even the other people in the movie don't know what he's
saying.
Ultra-violent.
Seedy. Thickly British. Snappy camera work. The
soundtrack is good (not surprisingly, it's filled with alot of Madonna songs).
Ritchie is seriously trying to become the next
Quentin Tarantino (hey that name rings a bell, but what has he done
lately? Hmmm).
SUGAR AND
SPICE
BOMB
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Violence, Sexual References, Adult Themes
Starring:
Francine MacDougall, Marley Shelton, Melissa George, Sara Marsh, James
Marsden, Rachel Blanchard, Marla Sokoloff
When
a member of Lincoln High School's A-Squad Cheerleaders gets into trouble and
need of some cash, the team decides to help her by holding up a bank branch in a
grocery store.
Oh.
Can movies become any more inane?
The
writing is so severely lacking in so many ways, this review would be pages long
if I went into any kind of detail. So I'll spare us both.
The
girls get the "brilliant" idea to rob banks after watching POINT
BREAK, of all things, during a sleepover. Now, I love Keanu as much as the
next gal, but come on, I'm not using any of his movies as fodder for my
life altering decisions.
SWEET
NOVEMBER
(Warner Bros.)
* * 1/2
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Violence, Partial Nudity, Mild Sexual Situations, Adult Themes
Starring:
Keanu Reeves, Charlize Theron, Jason Isaacs, Liam Aikan
A
free-spirited woman offers to "help" a high-strung, workaholic San
Francisco ad executive loosen up and enjoy life. All he has to do is move
in with her for 30 days starting November first.
A
remake of the 1968 Sandy Dennis film of the same name, the original was somewhat
implausible and this one is too. There's never a good reason why this
seemingly intelligent ad exec decides to take this rather flaky woman up on her
offer.
And
why is the offer only good for 30 days? As the character puts it, that's
"long enough to be meaningful, and short enough to stay out of
trouble". Okay, if you say so.
Keanu
is very charming (as always) and Charlize is very believeable as the flaky woman
with "ulterior" motives all her own. Most of the supporting
roles are stereotypes.
Yes
this story, directed by Pat O'Conner, hits a few emotional chords, but there are
too many holes in the storyline to sustain any degree of emotional involvement
all the way through.
Did
I need my tissues? You bet I did.
Do
I recommend this movie? Not exactly.
Will
I own this on video? It stars Keanu Reeves, doesn't it? 'Nuf said.
3000
MILES TO GRACELAND
(Warner Bros.)
* * *
Rated: R
Warnings:
Strong Language, Extreme Violence, Gore, Partial Nudity, Sexual
Situations, Adult Themes
Starring:
Kevin Costner, Kurt Russell, Courtney Cox-Arquette, Christian Slater,
David Arquette, Bokeem Woodbine, Howie Long, Thomas Haden Church, Ice-T, Kevin
Pollack, Jon Lovitz
A
band of criminals, posing as Elvis impersonators, decide to rob a Las Vegas
casino during an Elvis convention.
Directed
by commercial and music video veteran Demian Lichtenstein (from a story he
co-wrote with Richard Recco), this is a somewhat cliche'd grand heist/road
picture. What gives it it's edge, is it's high octane, high adrenaline
pacing.
Kevin
Costner, playing his first villain since his role in THE PERFECT WORLD, is the
ultimate bad-ass criminal. No conscience. No remorse. Yet,
there's something very interesting about this character, and not just that he
believes he is the illegitimate son of the King himself.
As
for Kurt Russell, the Elvis theme is nothing new. At age 10, his film
debut was in a movie called IT HAPPENED AT THE WORLD'S FAIR which starred some
guy named Elvis Presley. Then some time later, Kurt Russell played Elvis
Presley in a made for tv movie. Lets put it this way, the man looks quite at
home in a sequined jumpsuit.
Big
surprise for me came from Courtney Cox-Arquette. Though her character is
pretty much the bimbo type, Courtney displays some real acting chops. I
guess all those years on Friends really paid off.
There
are numerous gunfights throughout this movie and the body count is so high you
might think this was a Quentin Tarantino movie, but the anti-chemistry of
Costner, Russell and Cox-Arquette is very entertaining. It's really quite
a rush.
THIRTEEN
DAYS
(New Line)
* * *
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Violence, Adult Themes
Starring:
Kevin Costner, Bruce Greenwood, Steve Culp, Dylan Baker, Michael Fairman,
Frank Wood, Bill Smitrovich, Elya Baskin
In
depth look inside John F Kennedy's White House at how closely we came to war
during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Directed
by Roger Donaldson and written by David Self.
Although
this is produced by and stars Kevin Costner, he plays a fairly backseat role as
presidential aide Kenneth P. O'Donnell. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean
you're exempt from sitting through yet another insufferable accent.
Aside
from Costner, the casting seems to be drawn primarily by appearrance. Some
of the actors are near dead-ringers for the historical figures they portray.
Both
the roles of the Kennedy's, Robert F (Steven Culp) and John F (Bruce Greenwood)
are handled beautifully. The mannerisms are perfect, the accents are
somewhat subdued but they're there and they look enough like them to be totally
believeable.
The
camera work is a little distracting at times. The film alternates from
Color to B&W and back again.
I understand
the need to keep the story events in chronological order for history's sake, but
the film takes on a feeling of: This happened. And then this happened.
And then this happened...
Over
all, Thirteen Days is a frightening look back at America's history.
THE
WEDDING PLANNER
(Columbia)
* * *
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Mild Violence, Sexual References, Adult Themes
Starring:
Jennifer Lopez, Matthew McConaughey, Bridget Wilson Sampras, Justin
Chambers, Judy Greer, Alex Rocco, Joanna Gleason, Fred Willard
A
San Francisco woman who plans elaborate weddings for other people, falls in love
with a man who came to her rescue only to find he's the prospective groom of her
next assignment. The largest wedding she has ever handled and the one
destined to make her a partner in the company.
San
Francisco is a beautiful city and it's many picturesque locations lend well to a
romantic comedy of this sort. Beautiful churches. Beautiful parks.
Beautiful gardens.
The
pairing of Lopez and McConaughey works primarily because they're good looking
people who look good together. The soft focus camera work doesn't hurt
either.
The
writing is fairly adequate, the tone doesn't remain consistant throughout.
The humour is good, obviously some moments are much funnier than others.
Lopez
and McConaughey are not necessarily known for their work in romantic comedies
(this is her first, and his second if you call EDtv a romantic comedy), but pull
off the task pretty well.
WHAT
WOMEN WANT
(Paramount)
* * * 1/2
Rated:
PG-13
Warnings:
Language, Mild Violence, Partial Nudity, Sexual Situations, Adult Themes
Starring:
Mel Gibson, Helen Hunt, Marisa Tomei, Lauren
Holly, Ashley Johnson, Delta Burke, Valerie Perrine, Alan Alda
Nick
Marshall, the ultimate male chauvenist, endures a life altering experience - the
result of a mishap in his bathroom involving a hairdryer and a filled bathtub -
that leaves him with the uncanny ability of listening in on the inner thoughts
of the women around him.
Mel
Gibson is hilariously funny. Why he hasn't done more romantic comedies
before is beyond me. He has an innate comedic ability and his timing is
impeccable. He can even sing and dance.
The
wit and dialogue is crisp and quick. The characters are fully developed
and the humour is delightfully insightful.
Each
and every performance, no matter how small the role, is just wonderful.
On
a personal note, I'm really grateful that no one actually has the ability to
read a woman's mind. I know I wouldn't want anyone reading my thoughts.
It would frighten them.