I was asked to review “Confessions of a Shopaholic” for National Review. The only sticking point was that I was in Fort Hood, Texas to meet the soldiers David served with in Iraq when it debuted. We landed in Austin and went straight to the movie theater... with a whole row of soldiers trying to pretend they weren't enjoying it.
Anyway, here’s the review, if you are inclined to care about such things!
Friday, February 20, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
Seeing Dead People
Do you ever find yourself in conversations that are less than scintillating? When my children were young and had "playdates," the mothers frequently sat around and discussed the most mundane issues -- potty training, nutritious snacks, the safest car seats...
I've almost bored myself.
This weekend, David and I rented a movie that deals with these conversations. Now, rarely do my husband and I agree on movies – I prefer interesting dialogue and character development while he prefers body humor jokes and a high mortality rate. However, we unanimously loved “Ghost Town,” with Ricky Gervais, Tea Leoni, and Greg Kinnear.
Both big fans of “The Office,” we naturally were drawn to Gervais’s awkward, cringe-inducing insensitivity, but didn’t have huge expectations from this movie. It is a romantic comedy, after all.
Gervais plays “Bertram Pincus,” a dentist who hates people, a middle-aged man who lives alone and has no filter between his brain, his mouth, and the people who are unfortunate enough to find themselves in his company. One day he has a routine surgical procedure that goes awry. After dying on the operating table for a few minutes, he recovers and realizes he can see dead people. And these ghosts actually need him to help finish their business on earth before they go to their final resting place. One such ghost is Frank Herlihy (Greg Kinnear), whose wife (Tea Leoni) realized just seconds before his death that he was cheating on her.
No, there are no pottery scenes with Patrick Swayze and no twists a la M. Night Shyamalan. But the movie is elevated by Gervais’s deadpan hilarity, as well Kristen Wiig’s turn as an incompetent surgeon.
While it’s invigorating to see Gervais dodge a global warming activist and refusing to attend an office celebration for his co-workers’ new baby, it does raise questions about how we should relate to others. As for someone who frequently fights that internal Bertram Pincus – with various degrees of success – it was a good and funny reminder that sometimes it is best to connect with the people around you.
Even if it does lead to a conversation about spray-on tans, the best way to potty train a three year old, or the latest iteration of “The Bachelor.”
I've almost bored myself.
This weekend, David and I rented a movie that deals with these conversations. Now, rarely do my husband and I agree on movies – I prefer interesting dialogue and character development while he prefers body humor jokes and a high mortality rate. However, we unanimously loved “Ghost Town,” with Ricky Gervais, Tea Leoni, and Greg Kinnear.
Both big fans of “The Office,” we naturally were drawn to Gervais’s awkward, cringe-inducing insensitivity, but didn’t have huge expectations from this movie. It is a romantic comedy, after all.
Gervais plays “Bertram Pincus,” a dentist who hates people, a middle-aged man who lives alone and has no filter between his brain, his mouth, and the people who are unfortunate enough to find themselves in his company. One day he has a routine surgical procedure that goes awry. After dying on the operating table for a few minutes, he recovers and realizes he can see dead people. And these ghosts actually need him to help finish their business on earth before they go to their final resting place. One such ghost is Frank Herlihy (Greg Kinnear), whose wife (Tea Leoni) realized just seconds before his death that he was cheating on her.
No, there are no pottery scenes with Patrick Swayze and no twists a la M. Night Shyamalan. But the movie is elevated by Gervais’s deadpan hilarity, as well Kristen Wiig’s turn as an incompetent surgeon.
While it’s invigorating to see Gervais dodge a global warming activist and refusing to attend an office celebration for his co-workers’ new baby, it does raise questions about how we should relate to others. As for someone who frequently fights that internal Bertram Pincus – with various degrees of success – it was a good and funny reminder that sometimes it is best to connect with the people around you.
Even if it does lead to a conversation about spray-on tans, the best way to potty train a three year old, or the latest iteration of “The Bachelor.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
