| Overall Grade: |
B- |
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| Story: |
C |
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| Acting: |
B+ |
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| Direction: |
C- |
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| Visuals: |
B- |
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How to Lose Fans & Alienate Moviegoers ...
by Rob L (movies profile)
Oct 18, 2008
1
of
1 people found this review helpful
I'll admit it, I'm a loyal Kirsten Dunst fan. That's the main reason I wanted to see HLF&AP, and to me, her presence and performance are the main thing to like about the movie.
With a problematic title like 'How to Lose Friends & Alienate People', this movie really needs to be hilarious, and it just isn't.
It's one of those flicks that couldn't quite decide what kind of movie it wanted to be:
--a crazy, raunchy, outrageous comedy?--there are some of those moments.
--a satire of the whole celebrity-culture business?--some of those moments, too.
--a good-vs.-evil story about an upbeat, small-time guy who hits the big-time and struggles with making the right choices?--those too.
--a character study about a likeable but klutzy fellow with emotional/family baggage trying to find his niche?--yup.
--a sweet, charming, romantic movie?--certainly there are those moments.
But it doesn't commit to any of these potential themes consistently or wholeheartedly enough. So what we have are some pretty good scattered bits and pieces, but not that recommendable a whole movie. The transvestite-stripper scenes will turn some people off, but even there, it doesn't show enough to merit the "graphic nudity" designation the rating board gave HLF&AP along with the R rating.
When you're a fan of an actor or actress, though, you enjoy seeing their work even in movies that are disappointing overall. Dunst makes any movie she's in better than it would be otherwise. Her performance helps save this movie from being terrible, but it can't overcome the disjointed, often aimless script and direction enough to make it a truly good movie. She contributes the most to the charming and/or touching romantic moments.
I saw HLF&AP Oct. 14, already knowing it was a huge box-office flop, and I could see why. Hey, for me, just the scene with Dunst dancing in her pajamas (with Simon Pegg) was worth the price of admission. But I can understand if that doesn't work for other moviegoers. |
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