Review: The Bachelor
Review by: Joy Wyse, the SILVER Screen Critic
Starring: Chris O'Donnell, Renee Zellweger, Artie Lange
Director: Gary Sinyor
The previews for The Bachelor had me anticipating this romantic comedy. The problem is, it wasn't very funny. Oh, it has some moments of romance, but mostly the film is filled with a lot of screaming. Marco, the best friend to Jimmie Shannon (O'Donnell) is played by Artie Lange who is the champion screamer in the film. How Jimmie ever picked Marco as his best friend is beyond me.
The movie is a remake of a Buster Keaton film from 1925 where Jimmie's uncle dies and his will endows him with $100 million IF he is married before his 30th birthday. Of course, his birthday happens to be the next day. When he botches his proposal to the girl he loves, she leaves the country, or so he thinks. So, he goes on a mad chase to marry `someone' before the deadline. It kind of proves that he does love the money more than he loves her, doesn't it? Even with the money, I think that this marriage is doomed to failure.
One of the most interesting bits is when Jimmie proposes to former girlfriend, Buckley, a frenetic person who smokes constantly. Her only consideration for the marriage is the money. Her family has fallen on bad times and with Jimmie's millions, she can redeem their status. I kept thinking how much the girl reminded me of Brooke Shields. That's because it IS Brooke Shields in one of her best acting jobs to date. She really got into the character.
Character actors Hal Holbrook and Ed Asner could have phoned in their parts. They obviously only did it for the money….like Buckley.
The only funny scenes are the ones from the preview, with the brides chasing Jimmie through the streets of San Francisco where the producers had advertised for extras who had their own wedding dresses. Most of the brides are nice normal girls in wedding dresses, but look in the crowd for some very interesting ones.
If this movie shows up on late night, free TV, I'll probably watch those final chase scenes to see what I may have missed. But it can't have been much. I give it a C-.
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