In my recent review of Jersey Girl, I asked the rhetorical
question, "What happens when a filmmaker as irreverent as Kevin Smith
writes and directs a conventionally sentimental romantic comedy?" I'm
now forced to ask a similar question. What happens when filmmakers as
quirky as the Coen Brothers (Raising Arizona, Fargo, The Big Lebowski,
The Man Who Wasn't There) direct a romantic comedy? Once again
expectations get in the way. What we have here is a modern
interpretation of the screwball comedy of the '30s, a story that
portrays marriage as a revolving door in which divorce is all too
frequently justified by Intolerable Cruelty.
Miles Massey
(George Clooney) is a very successful and affluent divorce attorney.
His bulletproof prenuptial agreement has never been broken; it's the
envy of the profession. We get our first hint of his balls-to-the-wall
courtroom strategy as he prepares to represent an unfaithful wife
being sued for divorce by her outraged husband, Hollywood producer
Donovan Donaly (Geoffrey Rush). Bonnie Donaly (Stacey Travis) is one
of a succession of philandering spouses Massey deals with daily, but
when he's retained by the exceptionally wealthy and adulterous Rex
Rexroth (Edward Herrmann), that captures his attention. The wife,
Marylin Rexroth (Catherine Zeta-Jones), has in her possession an
incriminating videotape shot by private detective Gus Petch (Cedric
the Entertainer) who apparently specializes in ass nailing.
Regardless, Miles wins the case, but not before becoming hopelessly
infatuated with the self-confessed gold-digger. And so starts a battle
of wits. When next Miles meets with Marylin (Catherine Zeta-
Jones), she has her next obscenely rich victim in tow, oil tycoon
Howard D. Doyle (Billy Bob Thornton doing his best aw shucks country
boy). Incredibly, they've come to Miles to have him draw up one of his
unbreakable prenup's. Miles is dumbfounded. Surely Doyle's only appeal
is his vast wealth, and yet Marylin is willing to insulate him by
signing the agreement. When Miles attends their wedding, his
suspicions are rewarded. During the reception, Doyle nullifies the
prenuptial agreement with a dramatic flourish in which barbeque sauce
is intimately involved. Miles can't help but admire her ability to
manipulate her way toward a huge fortune.
Miles and a very rich
and divorced Marylin will meet once again six months later in the
film's third act, during which the twists and turns in this clever and
quirky plot becomes more convoluted and faster paced. Despite the
silliness (or perhaps because of it), the viewer wants these two
people to fall into each other's arms (they deserve one another). But
there are hidden agendas, and each knows precisely what the other
represents. How can such adversaries come together?
The Coen
Brothers place tongue in cheek and manipulate the audience with great
skill. They set up plot points well in advance of resolution and bring
them home with delightfully unexpected timing. Perhaps I simply
checked my brain at the door, but I did not predict the twists until
the Coen Brothers revealed them. Clooney is a bit goofy here - his
teeth are a high priority - but his silliness is not over the top.
Zeta-Jones is a wonderful gold-digger; she reeks of avarice and self-
involvement. The head of Miles' firm, sequestered in his dark office
and connected to life support, is the most blatant evidence that we're
watching satire. His outrageousness is just shy of the fate of the man
with the asthma inhaler. Droll and sly, perhaps overwritten, I found
the film to be a pleasant diversion that shouldn't be taken very
seriously.
Video: How Does The Disc Look?
The
film's theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1 is presented in anamorphic
video. I found this transfer to be ever so slightly on the soft side,
but not distractingly so. Skin and fabric textures aren't as clearly
revealed as they are in the best transfers from Warner and Fox. Edge
halos are occasionally present, but they rarely intrude. Color
rendition is a bit on the hot side, most evident in exaggerated flesh
tones and the vividness of Marylin's red dress as she descends a
staircase to make an impressive entrance. Shadow detail is less than
optimal and inconsistent; in several of the darkly lit scenes, objects
in shadow became an amorphous void. I noticed no macroblocking or
mosquito noise.
Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?
There are two 5.1 English tracks on this DVD, Dolby Digital and
DTS. The surround channels are used with a subtle touch, providing a
few off-screen sounds and environmental effects. Exceptionally deep
bass is present but rare; the score's bass line and a few gunshots
were quite convincing. Sound effects in this genre support the plot
without becoming obvious; they serve the film well. Carter Burwell's
pleasant score never lets us forget that we're watching a comedy. The
instruments are spread across a sound stage that extends beyond the
confines of the front channels; the score has a nice sense of
presence. Dialog is relatively distortion free. A quick comparison
between the two tracks once again gives the edge to DTS for a slightly
more natural timber for musical instruments and voices.
The
alternative languages are in French and Spanish, also in Dolby Digital
5.1. Optional subtitles are in Spanish, French, and English for the
Hearing Impaired.
Supplements: What Goodies Are There?
A Look Inside Intolerable Cruelty (12:09) is a puff
piece. Behind-the-scenes footage punctuates interviews with the Coen
Brothers, producer Brian Grazer, George Clooney, Catherine Zeta-Jones,
and a few others. There's a lot of mutual backslapping in addition to
the typical discussions of plot and characters. Insubstantial. The
Wardrobe (5:11) places the spotlight on costume designer Mary
Zophres as she explains her artistic intent as she designed the
wardrobes for the stars. As you might expect, Zeta-Jones praises the
designer for making her look so good. Also insubstantial.
Filmmaker Approved & Assembled Outtakes (7:19, aggregate)
may be played individually or sequentially with a "Play All" feature.
They include: Paul Adelstein in "Eveybody Eats Berries"; Ladies and
Gentlemen, George Clooney; Ladies and Gentlemen, Catherine Zeta-Jones;
and, Rex Rexroth's Home Movie. The first is an exercise in tedium, a
repetitious collection of multiple takes of essentially one line from
the film. Perhaps its only value is to highlight how incredibly
monotonous and challenging being a film editor might be. The Clooney
flubs are quite funny; his relaxed style and self-mocking appeal. Less
self-deprecating is Zeta Jones as she flubs her lines in the next
sequence. The last is the film loop used in Rexroth's bedroom during
his, uh, energetic foreplay; this is the least valuable and most
annoying of the deleted scenes.
Cast & Crew: Bios and Film
Highlights is the familiar text feature that includes information
about George Clooney, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Geoffrey Rush, Cedric the
Entertainer, Edward Herrmann, Richard Jenkins, Billy Bob Thornton,
Paul Adelstein, Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, Robert Ramsey, Matthew Stone,
John Romano, Brian Grazer, James Jacks, and Sean Daniel.
The
100-minute film is organized into twenty-chapters.
DVD-ROM
Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc in your PC?
After the Universal skin loads atop your InterActual player, you'll
have access to one link that takes you directly to the Universal
Pictures home page.
Parting Thoughts
I was left
with the impression that Miles and Marylin love themselves too much to
be able to surrender to another. And the film doesn't have quite as
much bite as the typical Coen Brothers flick, but that's why I
originally suggested that expectations should be set aside.
Intolerable Cruelty is a pleasant and witty romp that amounts to
little more than a bit of escapism. The transfer is short of splendid
and the audio is simply fine but nothing special. With the exception
of Clooney's outtakes, the supplements aren't very fascinating. If you
want a few chuckles, this might be worth a rental. .
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