'3BlackChicks Review...'
JUST VISITING (2001) Rated PG-13; running time 88 minutes Genre: Comedy Seen at: Jack Lokes' Celebration Cinema (Lansing, Michigan) Official site: http://www.just-visiting.com/ IMDB site: http://us.imdb.com/Details?0189192 Written by: Christian Clavier, Jean-Marie Poire, John Hughes Directed by: Jean-Marie Poire Cast: Jean Reno, Christian Clavier, Christina Applegate, Malcolm McDowell, Tara Reid, Matthew Ross, Bridgette Wilson
Review Copyright Rose Cooper, 2001 Review URL: http://www.3blackchicks.com/bamsjustvisit.html
As JUST VISITING opens up, the rich baritone voice of Kelsey Grammer briefly narrates the background story. Apropos, as a line from Grammer's FRASIER TV show, spoken by Niles' pet bird [in "To Kill A Talking Bird", for my fellow Frasierholics], came to mind while I was watching this movie: "Cute, but stupid!"
The Story (WARNING: **spoilers contained below**) In 12th-century Merry Olde England, the Earl of Warrick was a playa-hata of the highest order. The target of the Earl's hatred was Count Thibault of Malfete (Jean Reno), a French nobleman who was engaged to Lady Rosalind (Christina Applegate). Through witchcraft and trickery, the Earl manages to separate Thibault from his Maiden Faire; and when the Count enlists the aid of an Old English Wizard (Malcolm McDowell) to try to right the wrong which was done, Thibault and his trusty servant Andre (Christian Clavier) get sent "through the corridors of time". Only, the Wizard discovers something went terribly wrong.
Fast forward to a modern-day Chicago museum, where Thibault and Andre experience some serious culture shock when they come face to face with not only modern technology, but also the face of Thibault's betrothed. But what's this? The museum curator is not Lady Rosalind, but instead, Julia Malfete (also Christina Applegate). Name ring a bell? Add in Julia's scheming, two-timing boyfriend Hunter (Matthew Ross), Amber (Bridgette Wilson) the slimy two-timee, and Angelique (Tara Reid), a "servant" herself who sees Andre as a soulmate - and...wait for it...
...wackiness ensues.
The Upshot: Of all the fish-out-of-water movies that I've seen in my lifetime - and I've seen a lot of scrawny minnows - none have come close to the fun of the best of them, MOSCOW ON THE HUDSON. To this day, my husband and I still quote it ["Kah-ffee! Kah-ffee! Kah-ffee!"]; and I got a kick out of recognizing the Russian waiter in HEARTBREAKERS as having been the clown Anatoly in "Moscow" (Elya Baskin, for the record). I seriously doubt that we'll be having such fond reminiscences regarding JUST VISITING.
"Visiting" wasn't a _bad_ movie, not necessarily; or at least, not completely. It was good for a few quick grins, maybe even a healthy laugh or two. I'm as amazed as anyone that Christina Applegate could even share a movie set with the likes of actor Jean Reno, without him wiping the floor with her; after all, with MARRIED WITH CHILDREN and JESSE on your resume, you don't exactly get called to read Shakespeare, y'know? And the time-out-of-place hook had its cute moments (lampooning the stereotype of how the French don't bathe, the Wizard's outfit, Andre's Issues with cars, and the like). But after the hook wore off (and it wore off pretty quickly), JUST VISITING labored on without much of interest to Say - no doubt under heavy John "Breakfast Club" Hughes influence. It finally crawled to its silly end [and could they have picked a more turgidly foul song for the closing credits? peeyew!], at which point I found myself making notation of the bad editing during the ObChaseScene. Ok, show of hands: who *didn't* see that coming?
Here's the thing that irked me the most, and it's the same thing that bothers me when it happens to Frasier on FRASIER: you have Andre, played by actor (and, notably, co-writer) Christian Clavier - who would by no stretch of the imagination be considered your typical Hollywood babe magnet - and you have Cute Young Thing Angelique (Tara Reid, who, along with Clavier, were the best things about "Visiting")...and nobody seems to think twice about that matchup? I know that Love Conquers All and all, but have the ubiquitous They *ever* had such mixed matchups the other way around, with a rather frumpy looking chick hooking up with a Studmuffin? _Without_ it being played as parody or pathos? I'm no feminazi, but render unto me a break!
I like a good, mindless popcorn flick as much as the next guy, as witnessed by my high rating for HEARTBREAKERS; unfortunately, the not-so-good JUST VISITING runs out of steam way before you get to the icky pseudo-butter at the bottom of the bag.
The "Black Factor" [ObDisclaimer: We Are Not A Monolith]:
[minor spoiler warning] Here's Proof that I've become desensitized to Bug-Eyed Black Movie Characters, and have Moved On: I didn't even notice the slight resemblance the Black security guard seemed to have to Amos. Or was it Andy?
Ok, seriously, though I obviously noticed Sgt. Bugeyes, I also noticed similar reactions in the White kids and adults in the museum. And wouldn't *you* bug out if you saw someone melt before your eyes? Hmmm...
Bammer's Bottom Line: Some things just lose it in the translation. I haven't seen the original flick that JUST VISITING was based on, but I'll betcha francs to croissants that it was better in the original French.
JUST VISITING (rating: yellowlight):
JUST VISITING is good for a few scattered chuckles, but it's no French tickler.
Maird, what a bad pun that was.
Rose "Bams" Cooper Webchick and Editor, 3BlackChicks Review Entertainment Reviews With Flava! Copyright Rose Cooper, 2001 EMAIL: bams@3blackchicks.com http://www.3blackchicks.com/
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