DROWNING MONA RATING: 6 /10 --> Barely recommendable
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Don't let the ads fool ya, folks...the main star of this movie is none other than Ben Affleck's baby brother, Casey. Sure Jamie Lee Curtis' big boobs look good bouncing up and down in the trailer, of course Neve Campbell and Bette Midler will bring in their respective demographics, and surely the inclusion of ol' faithful, Danny DeVito, will bring to mind many other funnier comedies of which he's been a part. But the one character that really drives the story is little ole Casey, and I for one, enjoyed his performance...and his cute, little teeth! Oh, and the movie you say?
PLOT: Mona Dearly is a woman hated by practically everyone in this quaint, little hick town. Fortunately for everyone, she dies in a car accident early on in this film...well actually, t'was no accident...Mona's brakes were tampered with. Unfortunately for everyone, the local police are on the hunt for the murderer, with no less than everyone in town targeted as a suspect.
CRITIQUE: A fun, diverse cast, some solid laughs, many other chuckles and smiles don't take away from the fact that this movie lacks the consistent humor to sustain a crowd filled with angry, young whippersnappers looking for an all-out comedy fest. The movie starts off strong with plenty of successful jokes, a bevy of colorful characters (most of whom just act dumb and goofy) and a cool premise which rapidly establishes the murder mystery as the film's prime source of business. But ultimately the film doesn't gather much steam, lulls from point to point, and basically just bounces around from one decent joke to another lame one and then back again. So why am I still recommending it? Well, the cast is quite a hoot with every member firmly grinding their teeth into their backdoor roles, and some of the one-liners were pure hilarity ("You snooze, you lose"). Well, you had to be there. Actually, the film's great cast is one of the things that holds it back from even greater success, since its 90 minute prescription is barely enough time to truly get to know any of them real well. It felt like there was a lot of potential in the cast, the premise and some of the jokes, but in the end, the story and the laughs just seemed to come up a little short.
Danny DeVito was one of the standouts in the cast, playing an excellent straight man in a town full of ninnies. Others in the cast weren't so lucky, with Jamie Lee Curtis and Neve Campbell playing deadbeat parts that didn't necessarily seem to require their specific talent. And despite her early departure from the film, Bette Midler gives us some superb mean-spirited shtuff via the consistent flashback sequences sprinkled across this movie. And then there's Casey Affleck. Yes, Casey...not Ben. Here's a dude whose probably best known for his dinky "friend" role in his brother's GOOD WILL HUNTING movie, but here he is coming through as the nice, little, naïve dude with a heart. Of course, his bleach, blonde awful haircut helps him look cute and innocent, but all the same, thumbs up for little brother. And last but certainly not least, let's not forget to mention the pathetically funny character portrayed by William Fichtner, who kicked mighty ass in last year's GO as the cop with a penchant for homosexual innuendoes, and does another credible job as the sad-sack, loser husband in this one. All in all, the film might provide some of you with the type of entertainment that you're looking in your night (some laughs, quick runtime, easy story), but it could also disappoint many others. I would offer a stronger recommendation for viewing this film on video, or simply advise you to lower your expectations for this movie, and try to enjoy it for all of its smaller, better points which include a solid cast, plenty of laughs that do work, and well...the fact that Bette Midler is killed in it! Happy now?
Little Known Facts about this film and its stars: Actor William Fichtner only got his first role in the movies in 1992, when he played a cop in Spike Lee's MALCOLM X. His next role only came about in 1994, when he portrayed a stage manager in QUIZ SHOW. Since that time, his movie roster has been much more active, including turns in STRANGE DAYS, HEAT, CONTACT and ARMAGEDDON. He began his career as a soap opera actor starring in AS THE WORLD TURNS for about six years (1987-1993). Actor Marcus Thomas, who plays Bette Midler's idiot son Jeff in this movie, was born in Brussels and raised in Switzerland. He moved to America in 1992 and attended the prestigious Strasberg Institute for a year. This film is his first big break. This film is writer Peter Steinfeld's (no relation to Jerry Seinfeld...hehe) first produced movie screenplay. In order to purchase the required dozen or so Yugo cars for the filming of this movie, the producers had to actually do a search on the Internet to find dealers that still sold the models. They were lucky enough to find two who actually still had them-one in New York and the other in Denver. Living up to their reputations as the lemon of the automotive industry, the cars needed their own set of handlers to tune prior to each scene. Danny DeVito isn't merely one of the stars of this movie, he is also one of its executive producers. This is the third acting collaboration between Bette Midler and himself, who previously starred together in RUTHLESS PEOPLE, a film in which they only shared one scene (just like this movie), and GET SHORTY, a film which never showed them on the screen at the same time.
Review Date: February 28, 2000 Director: Nick Gomez Writer: Peter Steinfeld Producers: Al Corley, Eugene Musso and Bart Rosenblatt Actors: Danny DeVito as Wyatt Rash Casey Affleck as Bobby Calzone Bette Midler as Monda Dearly Neve Campbell as Ellen Genre: Comedy Year of Release: 2000 -------------------------------------- JoBlo's Movie Emporium http://www.joblo.com/ -------------------------------------- (c) 2000 Berge Garabedian
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