PLANET SICK-BOY: http://www.sick-boy.com
Kissing a Fool is the latest romantic comedy served up to the mindless legion of brain-dead imbeciles that we call the American viewers. It does nothing new, but since they have embraced similar filth (read: My Best Friend's Wedding), it will probably be well received.
The only interesting thing about Kissing is the unique casting. David Schwimmer (Friends) plays Max Abbott, an over-confident, ultra-macho Chicago sportscaster who nails everything that moves and utters the line `What Up, Chicago?' ad nauseum in both his professional and personal lives. Schwimmer is usually typecast as the super-shy downtrodden loser type, but in Kissing, that role is filled by Jason Lee (Chasing Amy), who plays the sensitive Air Supply/Barry Manilow loving writer, Jay. Lee is known best for his offensive obscenity-screaming characters written by Kevin Smith. So, what I guess what I'm trying to say is that the parts were kinda swapped.
Linda (Bonnie Hunt, Jumanji) tells the film in narrative flashback at a wedding. She is a wealthy publisher who claims to have been responsible for introducing the happy newlyweds. We don't know who has just been married, but Linda doesn't care. She starts her story at the beginning…Max and Jay have been friends since grammar school...
Long story short, Jay sets Max up with Sam (Avital, Polish Wedding), his beautiful new editor. They fall in love and quickly start planning a wedding. The boorish Max suddenly develops the strange notion that Sam may not be `the one' and tries to get his pal to sleep with him as some sort of bizarre testosterone love-test. Jay, of course, wants nothing to do with Max's sinister plan, but ends up falling for Sam regardless.
Other than the casting, the only other bright spot in all of the banality is Israeli newcomer Avital. Of course, that could just be because she isn't Julia Roberts, Jennifer Aniston or Cameron Diaz. Lee seems more out of place in his role than Schwimmer does, but I have a feeling that Schwimmer is probably like Max in real life. Lee also has very disturbing hair. That could be because he had to have hair similar to Max so that when the bride and groom kiss at the beginning of the film, we wouldn't know who the groom was. I would have cut that scene and given Jay better hair. Maybe that would have helped his self-confidence, which would have led to him come to terms with his feelings for Sam sooner, which would have led to me getting home earlier.
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