Jami Bernard
Gary Dretzka
Leonard Klady
David Poland
Doug Pratt
Ray Pride
Stu VanAirsdale
..Gary
Dretzka
..Leonard
Klady
..David
Poland
..Ray
Pride
Alex and Emma
Directed by: Rob Reiner___________________________________
Wither Reiner? Or what hath Rob wrought?
Though I certainly cannot claim to be an avid advocate of the films of Rob Reiner, there was dependability to his work that extended from This is Spinal Tap to A Few Good Men with notable stops for Stand by Me, The Princess Bride and Misery. It's therefore tough to explain such recent misguided, banal efforts as North, The Story of Us and now Alex & Emma.
The basic idea of his new film is so trivial one can scarcely believe anyone would deem it commercial, even if it had been cast with Tom Cruise and Julia Roberts in the title roles. Moreover, it's one tough sell to imagine the project a labor of love or a "film that had to be made."
Briefly, here's the set up. Alex Sheldon (Luke Wilson) is blocked at page one of his second novel. He's already received and gambled away the sizeable advance from his publisher. In fact, he lost more than he had and the Cuban gangsters that hold his marker have given him 30 days to pay up or die.
With the gun literally and figuratively at his head, he bears down on the book. However, he realizes he's facing a gargantuan task that cannot physically be accomplished unless he dictates it to a stenographer. Enter Emma Dinsmore (Kate Hudson), a working girl who appears grounded and sensible, yet accepts Alex's assignment with full knowledge she will only be paid upon completion and submission of the text.
The next 90 minutes are largely consumed with the two characters locked up in Alex's crummy apartment with him relating his period romance and the steno periodically making astute observations. In the book within the film as presumably envisioned in the author's head, Alex is the protagonist, an old flame is the objet d'amour and Emma plays a series of irritating servants.
In case you haven't guessed, this is the genre of romantic comedy in which the leading characters start out fighting like cats and dogs and as the action proceeds realize they are really madly in love. However, the nature of romance has changed considerably since this scenario was popularized in It Happened One Night, Bringing Up Baby, The Palm Beach Story and scads of others in the 1930s and '40s. The precious nature of the material then as now requires actors possessing considerable charm, chemistry and pinpoint comic timing.
Ignoring for the moment that Jeremy Leven's screenplay is awkwardly constructed, rife with cornball clichés and virtually devoid of anything vaguely resembling human behavior, the teaming of Hudson and Wilson is singularly devoid of spark. I've yet to see either Wilson brother convince as a romantic leading man - both have an objective, ironic style that belies such a notion. And while Hudson has all the qualities in spades to be the contemporary Carole Lombard or Myrna Loy, she is truly defeated here by material that insists her character be a little too dim to be embraced.
If Reiner was indeed striving to fashion a contemporary screwball comedy, he truly misjudged the qualities he has as a filmmaker. Reiner's humor is grounded in reality, observational and droll. It is not madcap, dangerous or teetering on the edge.
 |
Release
Date: June 20, 2003
Rated: PG-13
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Starring: Luke Wilson, Kate Hudson, Jordan
Lund, Sophie Marceau, David Paymer
Produced by: Todd Black, Alan Greisman, Jeremy Leven, Rob Reiner, Elie
Samaha
Written by: Jeremy Leven, Adam Scheinman
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Distributed
by Warner Bros
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Review Date: June 19, 2003
