"Nurse Betty" – Not Enough to Fancy by Homer Yen (c) 2000
Betty (adorable Renee Zellweger, who could charm the Grinch) is a woman who would be better off living any kind of fantasy. But the closest she comes to it is by being an avid watcher of the sudsy "A Reason to Live," a "General Hospital"-esque soap opera. She is so enrapt in its story that not only can she recite many of its lines, she is moved to become a nurse herself. But her bullying, mullet-headed husband quickly squashes any dreams that she may have. This louse of a partner cheats on her behind her back, never remembers her birthday, and ridicules her for watching soaps. "It's only people with no lives that watch other people's fake lives," he disdainfully says. This is the kind of guy that every woman can do without.
The husband is not only a cheat, but he's also a thief. And when he double-crosses one of his business ties, two hitmen come to town to kill him. Betty witnesses this horrible act of violence, and as a result, slips into a state of dementia. She enters her ultimate fantasy by living her life within the realm of her favorite soap. She packs her things and heads off to Southern California in search of the heartthrob doctor (Greg Kinnear) that heads the cast of "A Reason to Live" believing that she once jilted him and now wants to make amends. She's a mixture of glee and delusion
This is the part of the story that is the most farcical and interesting. Arriving in L.A. in a nursing uniform that makes her look more like a Halloween party-goer rather than a functional nurse, compassion and dumb luck gains her employment at a local hospital. She even manages to meet her fictional doctor. And when they do, she talks as if she is on the show. Instead of laughing at her, the actor thinks that she is a talented method actress, projecting a Doris-Day-thing and improvising an audition. He is flattered and her fantasy continues.
But all is not heaven for our heroine. A darker side to this film emerges as the two hitmen (courtly Morgan Freeman and Chris Rock, who seems to have his squelch volume stuck at maximum), try to track her down. Not only is Betty a witness to the murder, but the car in which she has driven contains something that these two are trying to retrieve.
"Nurse Betty" thus becomes something of a twisted Cinderella story. There is an inventiveness that the writers achieve in which the magical realism of Zellwegger's world is countered against the no-nonsense world of Rock's. But, the plot lacks the charisma that is needed to maintain the weekend moviegoer's attention. The tone also seemed a bit unbalanced. It brims with sweetness when the story focuses on Betty's fabled world, but the 'hitmen' angle injects a sour feeling, especially since Rock curses like it was as involuntary as his breathing process. As a whole, the film did have its moments. It had some original ideas. And, it may have won a writing award at this year's Cannes International Film Festival. But it's questionable as to whether this dark fable will win over your approval.
Grade: C+
S: 0 out of 3 L: 3 out of 3 (mostly thanks to Chris Rock) V: 2 out of 3
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