Better Than Chocolate (1999)

reviewed by
Jon Ridge


Best movies of 1999:
Eyes Wide Shut
Blair Witch Project
The Matrix
The Sixth Sense
American Pie
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
Playing By Heart
³ Better Than Chocolate ³          * *

The new les-genda romantic comedy ³Better Than Chocolate² has a good first act, followed by a rather shitty second, then falls apart completely in the third and final. And, with one scene: Maggie (beautiful red-head Karyn Dwyer), who works in an adult novelty shop, has met and fallen for Kim (Christina Cox), a caricature artist; Maggieıs mother (played by Wendy Crewson) has moved in with them both, unaware the nature of their relationship, and finds them in bed together. She asks whatıs going on, and Maggie lashes out. About feeling controlled by mom, and how their different, and this is her life; blah blah. Itıs a valid argument, actually - or, would be - except that the mother has not once to that moment said a thing negative toward her daughter, or criticized her in any way. So, the scene plays a mite forced and overwrought. Kim, who was waiting for her lover to fess up about them, mopes off with a ³fuck you², and leaves town; contrived. There should be another scene, here, of the girls arguing just a little longer - more than three seconds, I mean - before blowing up at one another and going separate ways. It gets worse: the store where Maggie works has trouble with customs, and in protest, she stands naked on window display for the press. Noone shows up, though, aside from gay-bashers who throw flaries into the store, so what was the point of doing it that time of night? And, what was she hoping to prove? Maggie hasnıt shown much concern, one way or another, for the whole censorship issue (save for a book ice sculpture, donıt ask), nor the storeıs welfare. So, um... why? Channeling a bit of emotionally-distraught energy through anything but pining futilly over lost love? I donıt know; unclear. And, why do gay-bashers have to make an appearance (twice, no less) at all? We even get an explosion (how very Hollywood, Trimark) in the end to tidy everything up - relationships, everything - and you can just hear that Sarah MacLachlan song coming on, as everybody stands around, happy, and our lovers reunite at the last second. Too much, too much. ³Better² has a distinct s.f.w. air about it, almost from first frame to last. The best thing about it, these two girls, shouldıve been the filmıs focalpoint, but they're treated as an afterthought. Which is a shame, because Cox (who resembles a grown-up twin from ³Full House²) and Dwyer make a nice, sexy couple. Theyıre attractive, good- natured and totally into eachother. But, theyıre forgotten; two indisputably erotic sex scenes, and thatıs it. I especially liked the dance club sequence, where the one girl gives the other a rose; and, the body painting. But, itıs hard to compete with such trite filler: do we care what Maggieıs dingbat mom (fine to be the comic stooge, but show a little intelligence) will think of her daughterıs lifestyle? Or, if the drag queen (well played by Peter Outerbridge) will win over the neurotic store owner? Does the film have to tell us not everyone with same-sex proclivity is accepted in todayıs society; duh, we know that, letıs move on. This is one of the yearıs worst scripts, about so much itıs about nothing. Iıd keep act one, because the dialogue is smooth and witty, remove everything else that happens in the film, leave the sex where it is and start over. Or, no - just take these two young leads and put them in something smarter and more serious. They were certainly ready for it.

     Best line:  ³Thatıs me: letting it all hang in.²

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