 KSL Movie Show Review:...
MADE OF HONOR *1/2 By Steve Salles Standard Examiner movie critic GO: if this is your first time . . . (bashful look here) . . . watching a romantic comedy! DON’T GO: if this not only is NOT your first rodeo, but you have a wall full of ribbons to show for it. I give props to Patrick Dempsey. The dude has world class hair. That’s nice if you’re an underwear model but you’ll need something more if you want to be believed as an actor. And that might be my biggest problem (one of many) with “Made of Honor.” I just never buy him as this cad Tom that sleeps with every woman he sees, but becomes best friends with the one that won’t let him. For ten years, he and Hannah (Michelle Monaghan) have done everything together beautifully except the big “I-T.” How do we know? Because they tell us and they’re always laughing and cooing at each other even while standing in line at the bakery. Hannah just accepts that Tom is a he-whore with a set of pig man rules aimed at subjugating his conquests into staying at arm’s length. She apparently doesn’t care that he’s using women like towelettes saying stuff like, “oh that’s just SO Tom.” Tee-hee. Tom believes he’s in the perfect world as he can exploit these various females but can always come home to Hannah. But that perfect world will of course come crashing down as Hannah goes to Scotland for a prolonged business trip and returns to New York engaged. And of course, Tom is realizing that Hannah has been the girl of his dreams all along and can’t wait to tell her as she asks him to meet her at one of their favorite restaurants on her return. The only thing missing here is the phonograph needle scratching across the romantic music (maybe because no one remembers phongraphs anymore) as Tom sees Hannah’s new love interest Colin for the first time. A shocked, melodramatic look would have sufficed but no, Dempsey backs into a server and the two do cartwheels across a handful of tables - not once but twice. Hannah is marrying this perfect Scotsman (“Rome’s” Kevin McKidd) after just knowing him a few weeks - and here’s the kicker - she wants her best friend Tom to be her maid of honor? Talk about emasculating, this poor guy will be dished an extra plate of humble pie as he and the other bride’s maids - one of which he slept with and dumped badly in the past (oh that Tom!) - will have to make all the usual girlie arrangements for her big Scottish wedding. His big plan now is to be the best maid of honor ever so he can somehow steal the bride at the right moment - and I’m thinking of the title - this is how he’s “MADE of honor?” Please! No cliché is too trite for this movie as Dempsey even borrows a horse at one point and it gets even more ridiculous from there if that’s possible. I’m convinced if you go and LOVE this romantic comedy, you’ve either been in complete sensory depravation, should be, or appreciate great hair and just don’t care about originality any more. “Made of Honor” should have been called “Made of Fodder.” But if you’ve been dying to see a romantic movie in the worst way - or just dying - this is definitely the film to see (then death won’t seem so bad). THE FILM: “Made of Honor” OUR RATING: *1/2 STARRING: Patrick Dempsey, Michelle Monaghan, Kevin McKidd, Sydney Pollack and Kathleen Quinlan BEHIND THE SCENES: Directed by Paul Weiland (“City Slickers II” “Leonard Part 6”) - filmed in New York City and Great Britain PLAYING: Running time: 101 minutes MPAA RATING: PG-13 movies at a glance: MADE OF HONOR *1/2 (PG-13) sexual content and language. Best friends Tom and Hannah are perfect for each other, but don’t see it until Hannah is about to marry another. Will they come around? Is this a clue? The film won the Grand Jury Prize at the International Cliché Festival held each year in Barcelona. Yeah, it’s that good (and I made that last part up).
Movie Showings Links:
Offical Web Site for 'Made of Honor'...
KSL Real Audio Review:
|
 |
Movie Show Home Page
|
Doug