If it weren't for Angelina Jolie, I would've fell asleep through the whole damn movie. Jolie delivers another spirited performance, and she is an extremely beautiful woman with a smile to die for. But the movie is just dull, dull, dull. First of all, if the director wanted to make this a straight drama that's fine. Just don't market it as a COMEDY! If sentimental schmaltz with few or no laughs is your definition of comedy, then you're in for a treat. The director is Stephen Herek, who also directed the dull, forgettable Eddie Murphy vehicle "Holy Man." Like that movie, "Life..." is horribly uneven, taking a serious turn way too early in the film and never recovering. Despite extremely poor attempts, I'm pretty sure Herek intended this to be a comedy. Herek just has no sense of timing! And may I add, there are certain scenes in the previews that weren't used in the final cut--Why the hell do directors tease us like that?!!!!!! For example, there's supposed to be one scene where Jolie is on the set of a TV show and a light from the ceiling falls down, inches away from killing her. But there are no scenes where her life seems threatened. Instead, the movie gets preachy and sentimental about the subject of carpe diem and developing the all-too-predictable love affair between Jolie and Edward Burns. Like always, they start out hating each other's guts and about 20 minutes through the flick, they're practically soulmates. The character arcs are so quick and stilted.
I like Edward Burns, but he should definitely stick to independent film. I don't usually say this about directors, but he should stick to starring in his own movies. His writing is obviously much more creative than that of Hollywood screenwriters, who get paid 10 times as much as him. OK, he was fairly good in "15 Minutes" and quite good in "Saving Private Ryan," but he should try to steer clear of Hollywood.
Every scene is so dull and downbeat. Herek tries to redeem himself with pretentious fast-motion shots, identical to those of Madonna's "Ray of Light" video. If Jolie weren't the star, this film would be dead in the water. And Tony Shalhoub deserves better as well. I'm not surprised to see him in a corny flick, but he is an underrated comic actor and I loved him on "Wings."
Jolie decided she would take a break from movies after done with "Tomb Raider." Why, oh why, did she change her mind and star in this ultimately forgettable pseduo romantic comedy? She should've saved the blonde hair for a much better movie.
My score: 4 (out of 10)
I like Edward Burns, but he should definitely stick to independent film. I don't usually say this about directors, but he should stick to starring in his own movies. His writing is obviously much more creative than that of Hollywood screenwriters, who get paid 10 times as much as him. OK, he was fairly good in "15 Minutes" and quite good in "Saving Private Ryan," but he should try to steer clear of Hollywood.
Every scene is so dull and downbeat. Herek tries to redeem himself with pretentious fast-motion shots, identical to those of Madonna's "Ray of Light" video. If Jolie weren't the star, this film would be dead in the water. And Tony Shalhoub deserves better as well. I'm not surprised to see him in a corny flick, but he is an underrated comic actor and I loved him on "Wings."
Jolie decided she would take a break from movies after done with "Tomb Raider." Why, oh why, did she change her mind and star in this ultimately forgettable pseduo romantic comedy? She should've saved the blonde hair for a much better movie.
My score: 4 (out of 10)