At long last! Another film that
features Jon Favreau! His legions of adoring fans will finally get
their "Favreau fix." It has, after all, been nearly a month since
we last saw Jon Favreau in Elf, and for those of you who can't
get enough Jon Favreau, you'll be excited to know that he appears in
this film too!Sure, there are other people in this film, like Jack
Nicholson, Diane Keaton, Amanda Peet, and Keanu Reeves. But Jon
Favreau is in it too! Most other reviewers won't focus on the
Favreauity of the movie, but the Masked Reviewer knows what the people
want.
This movie is a romantic comedy by writer/director Nancy Meyers.
You may remember her from such films as
What Women Want (2000),
Father of the Bride II (1995),
Father of the Bride (1991),
Baby Boom (1987), and
Private Benjamin (1980). This time around, she deals
with issues of love and age. Older people dating younger people.
Older people dating older people. Younger people dating older
people. It's all in there.
Even though Jon Favreau only appears briefly in two scenes, the void
created by his lack of screen time is filled admirably, primarily by
Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton. Jack plays Jack -- big grin,
sunglasses, and all. He's suave, he's charming, he's funny, and
he's a ladies' man. If they'd shot the film courtside at a Lakers
game, you wouldn't know he was acting at all. Diane Keaton gives
the best performance she's given in years, if not ever. Both are
fun to watch on screen, and while they do have some chemistry, each is
so powerful on their own that you tend to feel like you're watching one
then the other.
Amanda Peet has a small role as Diane Keaton's daughter, and she's
fine. Keanu Reeves plays a hunky doctor. Now, the women in
the audience do tend to swoon over Keanu, but...a doctor? His
appearance on screen never seems right unless he's saying "Whoa", and
one can't help but think that if you found yourself in a hospital being
treated by Keanu Reeves, you might be better off running to Canada and
taking your chances with socialized medicine.
The plot of the story isn't terribly compelling. While the
underlying issue of "old people gettin' it on" is different than the
Hollywood norm (and will surely receive hearty 'hoorahs!' from the
oldsters), the action unfolds a bit too predictably. However,
there are a few good lines and great moments in the film, though those
can be credited to the actors rather than the ho-hum writing or
directing.
Jack Nicholson sings one of the songs in the film. You'll hear
him in the closing credits, so if you've always wanted to hear Jack
croon, this is your big chance.
Here's the best part: Diane Keaton does a nude scene. Some
people will not be excited by this, because she's in her 50's, but the
Masked Reviewer appreciates nudity in any motion picture, and Diane
Keaton is one sexy momma. For people who only want to see
20-year-olds on screen, you might want to skip this one. If the
idea of a naked person over 30 disgusts you, you might not dig it.
But, it's your loss. In fact, you might want to see the film any
way, as it does a great job of portraying older people realistically, as
sexual beings. That's always a good thing to see, unless it's your
parents.
If you enjoyed
As Good As It Gets, you will probably enjoy Something's Gotta
Give even more. As Good As It Gets wasn't as good as it
gets...Something's Gotta Give gives even more! The
performances by Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton are great fun, and
though it's not a pure comedy (there's the romantic parts, the serious
parts, the heartbreak parts, and the squishy mushy parts) it's well
worth seeing. It's sure to be a big hit with adult audiences.
It's not a deeply intellectual work, like one would normally associate
with Keanu Reeves, but it does what it tries to do and it does it well.
Jack's Movies
Diane's movies
Jon Favreau's Masterpieces
Expectation from the Title: When the Fat Lady from the circus
shows up for Thanksgiving dinner wearing her new Spandex(tm) pants,
everyone knows that it's only a matter of time.
Mother's Rule (Always Say Something Good About Everything):
This movie will make people over 40 want to go out and have lots of sex.
The Pros: Great, fun performances by Nicholson and Keaton.
Jon Favreau is in it. Nudity.
The Cons: It's a bit predictable and the writing isn't the
best. It feels a tad long at 117 minutes.