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MARILYN
HOTCHKISS' BALLROOM DANCING & CHARM SCHOOL |
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"Robert Carlyle
With His Precious!" |
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Directed by Randall
Miller - Written by
Randall Miller
Starring Robert Carlyle,
John Goodman, Marisa
Tomei, Mary Steenburgen
Distributed by Samuel
Goldwyn -
2006 - 103mins - Rated
PG13 |
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Richard Propes'
Review
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C |
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When destiny leads, love follows. |
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Is there an rule that
you have to write out the name of a film in order to review it?
No?
Are you sure?
<Big Sigh>
This film's title is almost as longwinded as John Goodman in this
schmaltzy, emotionally manipulative but occasionally charming film
written and directed by Randall Miller based upon a previous,
award-winning short film of his own.
"Marilyn Hotchkiss," as I will not so affectionately call it, centers
upon Steve (Goodman). Steve is a 48-year-old man who, as an
eight-year-old child, promised his sweetheart Lisa that on the fifth
day of the fifth month of the fifth year of the millennium that he
would meet her again at good ole' Marilyn's school.
Steve, barreling down the highway in his station wagon, is in a
horrible accident on the way to this long awaited rendezvous. Right
behind him Frank (Robert Carlyle), driving a delivery truck. Frank
calls 911, and being the good Samaritan, accompanies Steve to the
hospital as he clings to life.
Okay, I have to stop. I admit it. I'm laughing.
Picture, if you will, a man lying in his nearly totalled station wagon
with a steering wheel in his chest reminiscing about his lost love and
how he just has to keep his date with destiny.
<Snicker>
The problem isn't so much the sappy, schmaltzy storyline (Okay, that
is actually part of the problem), but the awkwardly over-the-top
performance of Goodman in delivering it. While I've long considered
Goodman a vastly underrated actor, he's provided clear evidence here
of his acting limitations. This, quite simply, is not a role that
Goodman comes even close to pulling off.
After a seemingly endless ambulance ride, Steve agrees to go to the
school, try to find Lisa and let her know that her dearest Steve
really did want to show up.
The story evolves into a few predictable twists and turns, ending
largely with Steve's own date with destiny after a few odd encounters
with other students of Marilyn's school including the not so charming
Randall (Donnie Wahlberg), his half-sister Meredith (Marisa Tomei)
and, of course, Marilyn herself (Mary Steenburgen). Additional
students show up here and there, in the persons of David Paymer, Sean
Astin, Sonia Braga and a host of others who range from dazzling to
downright dastardly.
Needless to say, lives will be changed, hearts will be healed, bodies
will mend and destinies will be fulfilled by the end of "Marilyn
Hotchkiss." "Marilyn Hotchkiss" isn't, by any means, an awful film. On
the contrary, it's practically an exercise in "functional" cinema. It
has a script, a plot, dialogue, actors and production design...all of
these pieces fit together neatly, too neatly, in a paint-by-numbers
film that, despite its overt pleading for us to get all weepy-eyed at
the proceedings never actually develops a character worth caring about
or a scenario that feels even remotely authentic.
Decent performances, especially by Tomei, Carlyle and Steenburgen,
can't overcome that this one time film short doesn't have enough
substance to become a feature film.
This is one dance where I will definitely sit out. |
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© Written by Richard Propes -
Email Me! |
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How We Rated This Film
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TC Candler -
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| Richard Propes
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C |
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Jacob Hall
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TC Candler's Comment
n/a
Jacob Hall's
Comment
n/a
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