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In fact, now that I think about it, What a Girl Wants has much more in common with The Princess Diaries than with Mrs. Timberlake's picture: a girl with a "normal" life gets a chance to meet the daddy dearest she never met (Colin Firth – what the hell is an actor this good doing in a picture like this?). But he's a British aristocrat and she's a sassy little mall-hopper. Can they get past each other's misgivings and learn to love each other? Yeah, I think they might.

A tired concept to be sure, but even what should be can't-miss scenes fail. Witness the obligatory "my American daughter has simply ruined this formal British party" scene where Bynes insists that the prudish socialites in her father's palace shake their cabooses to the tune of "Get Up Offa That Thing" comes off as being tired, not enjoyably embarrassing. And I don't mean embarrassing in a bad way – how do I explain…?

What a Girl Wants is a film that had potential to be a goofy filmic romp but it simply doesn't allow for much fun to be had. Sure, Bynes changes clothes a lot, and to adolescent girls perhaps the mere act of watching her shop around London is worth checking out this DVD. And What a Girl Wants isn't quite the waste of talent The Princess Diaries was (Julie Andrews deserves way more), it is just unmistakably flat.

It does, however, make me think of a great double feature: Crossroads and Coyote Ugly. Now that's what a girl wants! (Get it? What a Girl Wants? Ugh. I knew it was too much.)

Video: How Does The Disc Look?

Presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, this transfer is actually quite impressive. Detail is very good, with a nice and vivid appearance that is wonderfully three-dimensional. Blacks are consistently thorough and the film's ecstatic color palette (especially the flamboyant costume design) pops off the screen nicely. Add to this the fact that haloing is kept to a minimum and edge enhancement is rarely visible and this transfer ends up actually being surprisingly strong.

Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?

Given the full-tilt 5.1 Dolby mix here, What a Girl Wants' audio is still just standard and not as impressive as the transfer. Music is balanced really loud and sticks pretty specifically to the front channels. Rear use is too sporadic: atmospherics and effects get relegated to surround speakers and the overall effect is decidedly front-heavy. And the .1 LFE channel is hardly utilized at all. Dialogue has been recorded crisply and clearly, however, so even though more could have been done to pump this up, little girls should more than love it.

Also included is a Dolby 5.1 French track, English and French-Quebec subtitles and English Closed Captions.

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

The two screen- specific audio commentaries here are strange and surprisingly uninteresting. Amanda Bynes' solo commentary(?) is exactly what you'd think: she talks about how "awesome" everything is and how "going shopping in England is fun". Cute, youthful and sassy, but really necessary? Gag. Director Dennie Gordon then pops up on her own track along with co-writers Jenny Bicks and Elizabeth Chandler, all of whom offer a more professional perspective. But this one is just plain boring. Why not one commentary track with all three? That would have been much better.

Next we have a featurette, Fashion and Etiquette 101, where the film's costume designer talks about the attire choices for members of the cast (especially Bynes). Then What's a Girl to Wear? is a ridiculous fashion game where you have to correctly identify and match-up the various outfits Amanda Bynes wears in the film. I, of course, failed, but I can see the draw for a younger, junior-high crowd.

Add to this a full two minutes of additional scenes that are so short and truncated (and presented here without any context) that they make absolutely no sense whatsoever, plus the film's theatrical trailer (in 2.35:1 anamorphic and 2-channel stereo) and some cast and crew bios and you have the end of this insta-special edition.

DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc in your PC?

Considering this flick's target teen demographic, it is surprising some real ROM extras aren't included - just a generic Warner skin with some weblinks.

Parting Thoughts