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My original
thought process going in to "Georgia Rule" was to describe it as nothing
more than a two hour sitcom worthy of a local family channel. Filled
with every cliché in the book from an eccentric small town, an uppity
wealthy socialite, and the local town folks who fill her with a sense of
worth, this monstrosity is worthy of every bit of criticism that can be
thrown at it. But midway it takes such a confusing stern dramatic
direction that it’s just incredibly jarring to sit through. How we go
from a big fish in small pond comedy to a Lifetime drama of the week is
absolutely ridiculous, but lo and behold, director Gary Marshall tries
to pass off the sudden change in this tone, and it’s far from anything
resembling seamless or subtle. As for Jane Fonda, she’s yet to really
find her purpose in modern film and for probably a good reason. There’s
yet to be a director that hasn’t turned her into a limp archetype of
senior citizenship, and there isn’t a single actor who has the ability
to play off of her.
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From
Jennifer Lopez right down to Lindsay Lohan, Fonda dwarfs
them, and the sexual fascination with the utterly shrill
sub-par Lohan by the director turns Fonda into an
under-developed supporting character. When I was really
uncertain what the director intended for this movie, it
again toggles into a relationship comedy concerning mormons,
then a mother-daughter dramedy involving three generations
of women, and so on, and on. “Georgia Rule” is terrible, and
in many ways exploits star Lindsay Lohan. |
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From depicting her as
a party loving sexually promiscuous juvenile painfully mirroring her own
life, and taking every such opportunity to feature her in short shorts,
and cleavage dropping shirts, there isn’t a single shot here that
doesn’t make some sort of reference to her sexuality, or potential to
sex with Lohan, and it doesn’t so much become comedic as it does
uncomfortable, even for someone who finds her generally attractive. And
on many occasions Marshall attempts to make sexual molestation
absolutely hysterical. Marshall’s film is horribly unfocused switching
from sub-plot to sub-plot, toggling between characters and leaves so
many plotlines unresolved. Marshall, true to form, takes every chance to
be predictable to the point where he doesn’t even bother to challenge
the audience. Why is Georgia supposed to be an unsympathetic character
again? Will Rachel (Lohan) fall for the hunky mormon? Will Lily
(Huffman) reconnect and fall for the local town doctor she was once in
love with? Will Georgia ever learn to say “I Love You” to her family?
And, most importantly: Why is Garry Marshall still directing movies?
It’s a comedy
about sexual abuse, or at least it tries to be, and fails at with flying
colors. Marshall continues his losing streak with me, with a film that’s
an utterly horrid exploitation of Lohan, misuse of Fonda, and a clunky
dramedy through and through.
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