James Brooks has given us some spectacular work before. There was real magic in the writing of both "As Good As It Gets" and "Terms of Endearment", with their respective relationships ringing true and heartfelt. Each character shining individually and in their interactions. Not of it happens in this film. It is as if everyone was working alone and never talked to each other, much worse, Brooks seems to have no control over them or generating something that has any coherence. Each of the parts here is very good, with Witherspoon and Rudd doing some fine work, and Nicholson trying to salvage whatever part he has been given, but overall the results are very disappointing.
What could have a sweet and intelligent story of second chances and lucky breaks turns out to be a long, verbose, and not very entertaining film, as each of the main actors struggle to keep the narrative going. The problem is not the complexity of the material but the unnecessary amount of dialog that Brooks has come up with to explain some rather simple dilemma. The best moments in the film, and there aren't many involve the limited verbal exchanges between two secondary characters when their baby is born, but watching Rudd and Witherspoon handle their strained conversation is at times painful and challenging for both them and us.
The problem with the dialog is that it doesn't ring true. People struggle with relationships and initial meetings, but eventually the rhythm changes and a more natural flow occurs. Here, everyone's pattern is the same. We can't tell one person from the other, and in the end, the film suffers.
One last thought: It could have been much better.
What could have a sweet and intelligent story of second chances and lucky breaks turns out to be a long, verbose, and not very entertaining film, as each of the main actors struggle to keep the narrative going. The problem is not the complexity of the material but the unnecessary amount of dialog that Brooks has come up with to explain some rather simple dilemma. The best moments in the film, and there aren't many involve the limited verbal exchanges between two secondary characters when their baby is born, but watching Rudd and Witherspoon handle their strained conversation is at times painful and challenging for both them and us.
The problem with the dialog is that it doesn't ring true. People struggle with relationships and initial meetings, but eventually the rhythm changes and a more natural flow occurs. Here, everyone's pattern is the same. We can't tell one person from the other, and in the end, the film suffers.
One last thought: It could have been much better.