ROMY AND MICHELE'S HIGH SCHOOL REUNION
A film review by Chuck Dowling
Copyright 1997 Chuck Dowling
Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997) *1/2 out of ***** - Cast: Mira Sorvina, Lisa Kudrow, Janeane Garofalo. Written by: Robin Schiff. Directed by: David Mirkin. Running Time: 91 minutes.
First time feature film director David Mirkin has some great credits on his resume. He has been a creative influence on some of the most intelligently funny shows on television, notably "The Simpsons" and "Get A Life". Unfortunately, he's trapped here with a bad script, and very few opportunities to display his creative talents.
"Romy and Michele's High School Reunion" is a lot like "Clueless", and I couldn't stand "Clueless" either. Kudrow and Sorvino play a couple of airheaded losers who journey from Los Angeles to Tuscon, Arizona for their ten-year high school reunion. Realizing that they are pretty pathetic and have nothing to brag about in order to upstage the snotty preps who picked on them in school, they first set out to better their lives. Five minutes later, they realize that to better themselves is just too hard, so they concoct an intricate (for them anyway) story about how they invented Post-It Notes.
Also attending their reunion is Janeane Garofalo, who plays a frumpy, bitter woman. I was shocked at this choice in casting! Angry and sarcastic? Spunky Janeane? No, it can't be true. The only reason for her character to be here is so that she can point out to Romy and Michele that no matter how bad they thought they had it in high school, others had it worse. Really? Wow, who knew?
This film, as with "Clueless", shows us such superficial characters that I could care less about anything that happens to them. Also, the screen play is incredibly simple. "Act One--flashbacks. Act Two--prep for the reunion. Act Three--the reunion." Then, it's message towards the end of "Stay true to who you really are inside" is so heavy-handed and out of nowhere. Also, there's a dream sequence that lasts for what must be 20 minutes, which was 20 minutes too long. And, at the end of the reunion, Romy and Michele participate in a dance that is so absurd that I think my jaw actually dropped in disbelief.
But those reasons aren't as important as the film's main fault. The problem is that, as far as comedies go, it's just not funny. There were maybe three or four things I laughed at (intentionally, anyway) which probably amounted to 45 seconds of screen time. 45 seconds out of 91 minutes is not a good ratio. The film's best gag is only about five seconds long and occurs as a flashback, when Romy and Michele wonder about a boy from drama class.
Basically, the film just boils down to two empty-headed, unfunny women who wear tight, revealing clothing who are doing and saying things which couldn't interest me in the slightest. And unfortunately, four bulging breasts do not a good movie make. [R]
-- Chuck Dowling Visit Chuck's Movie Reviews at http://users.southeast.net/~chuckd21/ Over 1,600 movies rated and/or reviewed! Movie news, film related links, and reader's reviews.
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