28 Days (2000) Reviewed by Eugene Novikov http://www.ultimate-movie.com/ Member: Online Film Critics Society
Starring Sandra Bullock, Viggo Mortensen, Dominic West, Elizabeth Perkins, Steve Buscemi, Alan Tyduk. Directed by Betty Thomas. Rated PG- 13.
I often wonder why so many writers choose a mental institution of some sort as the setting for their movie. The most plausible explanation is the potential for quirky supporting characters -- you need look no further for colorful personalities than a group of basketcases and preferably drug addicted ones. It also gives a screenwriter a picture- perfect set-up for an ordinary-person-placed-in-group-of-eccentric- misfits plot, a favorite in Hollywood for years. The quitessential mental hospital movie is, of course, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest; there have since been many imitators. The latest entry into the genre is the Sandra Bullock vehicle 28 Days, a superficially entertaining drama that doesn't bother to expand on its concept much beyond a skeleton. The characters are enjoyable; the plot is wafer-thin.
In this version, Bullock plays Gwen Cummings, a happy-go-lucky alcoholic who doesn't realize that she has a problem until she falls on her sister's wedding cake and, in an effort to find a replacement, crashes the "just married" limousine into a house. In her trial, which the film (for better or worse) skips over, she is sentenced to either 28 days of drug rehab or the equivalent time in jail. Not wishing to spend time in the slammer, Gwen understandably chooses the former. She arrives at the Serenity Glen Rehabilitation Center where people basically chant 24/7 (as a substitute for prayer, she is told). Of course, she's high above all of these freaks, utterly convinced that she can stop using any time she wants to.
The only person who liked Gwen the way she was before rehab was her boyfriend Jasper (Dominic West). He comes to visit Gwen at Serenity Glen, taking her out on boatrides and the like, never forgetting to bring along a bottle of champagne. This is about the time when Gwen starts getting serious about kicking the habit. She resents her boyfriend's attempts to turn her back into the mess of a person she was before and gets involved with a baseball pitcher (Viggo Mortensen) who is also in rehab.
28 Days is pretty much exactly what it sounds like: a melodramatic tale of a woman discovering her worth as a person and that life can be good without booze. It's nothing groundbreaking, certainly, and director Betty Thomas (Private Parts) doesn't even suggest that there might be something here that is beyond the self-evident. Still, there is something to be said for a film that remains so watchable even when it's so obviously taking all the easy ways out. This is hardly The Road Less Traveled, but this highway is so smooth that it's a comfortable ride.
The film owes its success, in large part, to the typically likable lead performance by Sandra Bullock. We root for Gwen because Bullock makes it so apparent that she doesn't know any better; that the only path through life that anyone has ever shown her has been this destructive one. As she finally begins to wise up around the middle of the movie, we can't help but cheer her on. By the same token, Dominic West makes Jasper an effective bastard without foaming from the mouth; we despise him, but can imagine why Gwen was attracted to him in the first place. The characterization is simple, but it works.
Probably the only undisputed triumph here is the ending, which is sweet without being saccharine and nicely underscores the idea of positive human interaction instead of mind-altering substances. Despite everything, I became attached to Gwen Cummings during the course of the movie and its conclusion made me walk out with a smile.
The most remarkable thing about 28 Days is that it is being marketed as a comedy. I guess the marketers thought that no one in their right mind would attend a drug rehab movie that's not magically hilarious so they spliced together random clips from the film and made it seem like a laughfest. The film is not downbeat and it isn't depressing, but it certainly is not a comedy. As a drama, it's nothing special, but I must admit I enjoyed it and, at times, was even touched. Maybe next time someone will actually take some chances with the genre.
Grade: B-
©2000 Eugene Novikov
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