BUY THE DVD:
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SYNOPSIS:
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a talkshow talent scout writes a sexist column accusing all men of being cheaters.
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MOVIE FACT:
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unused titles for this film include "animal attraction" and "animal husbandry."
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RATING:
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two out of four possible stars
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A strange, quirky bit of celluloid, Someone Like You has its moments, but more often than not, it doesn't flow smoothly and seems like a chopped up movie with several parts that don't match. The chemistry between stars Ashley Judd, Greg Kinnear, and Hugh Jackman, in their love triangle, is probably the best part of the movie, but there isn't a lot of good story to go along with those characters. Though a romantic comedy is much more dependent on the characters than the story, in this film, the plot is so lacking, that it's hard to pay attention to the characters.
It's not that the story isn't charming: after being jilted by her boyfriend, a talk show talent scout writes a sexist column accusing all men of being cheaters, which gains her national fame. The basic plot is decent, but the scenes look like they were edited in the wrong order. In point of fact, the plot sometimes falls short because of the lack of energy in the script. Some of this film appears to have been put together at the last minute, and some of the scenes look as though they were put in to replace other scenes at the last minute because some sort of problem. The way the characters weave in and out of the story don't always makes sense. Ellen Barkin, who is a supporting character, but has a story all her own, seems to been given too much screen time for the length of this movie.
Though her acting style fits the movie quite well, and her character is needed for devices in the plot, there are still a few very long scenes that involve her and Ashley Judd that seem like they could have been cut down a few minutes. The audience is smart enough to gather what is going on in the scene without Barkin's long speeches. And speaking of involvement in the film, another character seemed underused and to come out of left field. Marisa Tomei, who plays Ashley Judd's best friend, had scenes that seemed to serve as nothing other than devices to move the plot forward. Her character wasn't emotionally involved in the story; she was just a way for Judd's character to explain the things that were going on in her head. Tomei has no other purpose in this movie than to act as a responder to Judd's questions and concerns.
It seems like a monumental misuse of talent to put Ellen Barkin in a role that seems extemporaneous and relegate Marisa Tomei to third row violin. The relationships between these supporting characters seem accurate enough, but many of the actors seem quite shallow. Though this is a romantic comedy, and it's all about people talking to one another, nobody reveals enough about their characters through that dialogue to make them endearing to the audience. If not for the raw sexual appeal between the leading triangle of stars, this movie wouldn't have many positive parts. And though it's easy to want two of the characters to end up with one another at the end of the film, one has to question the need for that strange cheerleading scene in the middle of the movie.
The reason Judd and Jackman come together in the scene is a weak one anyway, but when Judd starts acting like an acrobat around in her underwear, the movie just takes a turn for the weird. The scene accomplishes nothing more than getting Ashley Judd into her underwear. It doesn't forward the emotional relationship between the characters and seems like it could have been deleted. As do many of the scenes in this film. Much of what goes on between the characters are arguments about the horrible way relationships go between men and women, but these conversations eat into the humor of the film.
But the best parts of this film are the scenes where genuine humor is present. Whenever the film tries to dig deeper into the human psyche, the results are not convincing. When the scenes are just innocent romantic humor, the chemistry between the actors works. Hugh Jackman and Ashley Judd make a charming mis-matched couple and it's nice to see them fall in love with one another. Since this film is a romantic comedy, it's nice to see that it has a little bit of humor and a nice amount of romance. Viewers of the film will need to look past the strange composition of the scenes and make sure to ignore the lack of continuity of the story, and focus on some well-dressed and nice looking people.
Review by Kelsey Wyatt.
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