Wow! It's been a while since I've seen such an entirely horrible film - my congratulations to all involved. Extra care has been taken to make sure this film at no times displays any redeemable qualities. There's danger early on when the talented Frances McDormand appears, but then she inexplicably disappears for most of the interminably long duration, while Jack Nicholson flaunts his buff bod and Diane Keaton delivers a performance virtually unparalleled in the history of cinema for its sheer hideousness. It's hard to believe that those two actually used to be actors. Casting Keanu Reeves was a solid move - if you want to make a truly dismal movie, then yes, his presence is virtually mandatory, but to be honest, he's almost redundant here. Nicholson and Keaton are more than able to make a mess of it on their own, helped in no small way by the inspired direction and the fantastic script, which reverts continually to comments about Nicholson's genitals. It's pure genius.
The film kindly helps out the audience within the first few minutes by telegraphing the utterly banal and implausible ending. Now why can't all movies be like this? To think that some movies actually reward attention on the part of the audience. For shame. This is truly Hollywood moviemaking at its finest.
(no stars)
The Players:
Jack (fatso) Nicholson as Harry Sanborn
Diane (I can grin! I can wail! I can grin and wail at the same time! Look at
meee!) Keaton as Erica Barry
Keanu Reeves as Dr Dolittle
Amanda (just a pretty face) Peet as the selfish bitch of a daughter
Frances McDormand as Huh? Wha? She was in it? I must have blinked.
written by Ed in March 2004