It seems lately, Reese Witherspoon is vying for the queen of romantic comedy throne since Julia Roberts and Meg Ryan have somewhat taken a departure over the past four years and I welcome her. Reese Witherspoon showed promise as an actress in critically acclaimed movies like “Highway”, and “Election” and starred in one of my favorites “Cruel Intentions”. She has a knack for the soft and mushy movies, never really taking anything that’s really deep and emotionally driven. She has a flair for acting and takes this character head on. Originally offered to Charlize Theron, Witherspoon makes her character very likeable and charming. The movie starts off with a weird opener setting the stages for the entire movie and then we fast forward into her adult years. I’m not one for watching “chick flicks” which is what this movie would be classified under, but this is rather charming.
Tag Archives: Romance
The New Guy (2002)
Dizzy Harrison (D.J. Qualls) is an unpopular geek at Rock Creek High School and after an embarrassing accident with an erection, he decides to transfer schools but makes an oath to be a new man at his new school. He meets Luther (Eddie Griffith) a convict in a prison who decides to help him and teach him how to be cool and intimidate people, but can he pull it off when Rocky Creek students recognize him? “The New Guy” has barely any chuckles in it and has a ton of moments when you’re supposed to suspend logic and common sense. Why the character Dizzy would equate being a convict with popularity is beyond me.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)
The story of “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” is basically the cookie cutter romance we see in all Meg Ryan, Julia Roberts movies. It offers the illusion of originality by bombarding audiences with Greek stereotypes, but really clings to the formulaic romance comedy. Nia Vardalos is at least likable as the desperate and lonely Toula who feels pressure to get married by her parents and entire family. She’s the underdog who comes through in the end and that’s what helps this movie become likable. What ultimately drags this movie down is the pacing of the story.
Moonlight Mile (2002)
“The truth is hard. Sometimes it looks so wrong, y’ know. The color’s off, the style’s wrong, but I guess…I guess it’s where the good ones live.” That quote pretty much sums the movie’s entire premise because the parents, Jojo and Ben are desperately holding onto their daughter Diana’s memory and prefer to hold onto an illusion of their happy life rather than ever seeing the truth which is right there in their faces. Why do they do that? Maybe it’s because they hope to have some happiness after their daughter’s deaths and can’t face the stark truth before them. Joe is the soon to be son in law who lives with his in-laws and constantly has dreams with his ex haunting him, telling him to “Just say it”. What “It” is, the parents Jojo and Ben know, though they prefer to turn their heads.
The Sweetest Thing (2002)
The only reason I decided to watch this film was Cameron Diaz, because of the fact that every movie she’s in, she plays a likeable character. She’s likeable even in the putrid “Charlie’s Angels”. So, in the movie her character is very loveable and charming while being sexy and seductive. The rest of the supporting cast is very good and enjoyable characters; especially Selma Blair who, though under-used, is a very funny and quirky character. The problem with this is that, the movie plays out into a row of constant painfully unfunny and unrelated comedy skits starring all the characters.
Simone (2002)
Viktor Taransky (movie legend Al Pacino Dog Day Afternoon, The Godfather) is a movie producer who’s basically fed up with uptight actresses and in an attempt to regain his fame, creates a computer generated actress named Simone (Rachel Roberts). But as she becomes famous worldwide, Viktor begins to wonder if he made her famous or if she made him famous. I really enjoyed Katherine Keener’s role as Taransky’s tough ex-wife who also works with him in the studios; she always manages to pull in some good performances in stinkers and excellent films such as “Lovely & Amazing.”
Tadpole (2002)
Aaron Stanford makes his debut as Oscar Grubman, a fifteen year old intellect with an obsession for Voltaire who returns home to New York to visit his family. He has a bad crush on his stepmother Eve (Sigourney Weaver) unbeknownst to his inept father Stanley (John Ritter) but accidentally gets entangled in an affair with her flirtatious friend Diane (Bebe Neuwrith) who becomes infatuated with Oscar’s intelligent personality and begins to play mind games with him as he desperately tries to conceal the affair from his stepmother. Aaron Stanford skillfully portrays this kid who’s always one step ahead of everyone… or at least he thinks he is.