Down With Love

Starring: Renee Zellweger, Ewan McGregor, David Hyde Pierce, Sarah Paulson, Rachel Dratch, Jeri Ryan
Directed by: Peyton Reed
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy, Romance
2003

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: In 1962, a world-famous feminist author (Renee Zellweger) and a playboy magazine writer (Ewan McGregor) clash over their ideology- and their feelings for each other.

Review:

Tim: Whenever I think of this movie, I recall a conversation I had with one of my college buddies. I was trying to understand why he hated Renee Zellweger so much, and he replied, "Because she made Down With Love. I can never forgive her for that." While I don't take quite as harsh a view as he did, this is a pretty bad movie all around. I disliked it pretty strongly.

The movie certainly tries to capture that 1960s vibe, and to a certain extent, it does a good job. However, so much of the movie comes across as so over-the-top that it just seems ridiculous. I understand the movie was trying to channel those screwball comedies of the era, but I felt like this was overplayed. The acting is so forced that it just appears silly. This is a movie that tried way too hard to be retro stylish. It caused me to be far too removed from the plot and the story.

The story itself is actually pretty decent, for the most part. I like the story of a woman writing a best-seller that empowers women and frustrates men. This is a story that could only take place in the 1960s- that fascinating time when gender roles were starting to shift, women were leaving the house and entering the workforce and taking on increasingly important roles. This is a timely issue for the 60s, and the movie does a good job of playing that up. I actually even enjoy the two main characters- a strong-willed, "new" woman and a womanizing, old school, charming man. These two characters represent opposite ideals, and it is fun to see them clash while also being attracted to each other. That aspect of the film is quite good.

As I mentioned, the film causes the cast the overact. Everything is played up to the 10th degree, but it just seemed a bit silly. Ewan McGregor and Renee Zellweger actually have some real chemistry together. Unfortunately, this is somewhat buried in their "Look at me! I'm a character from the 60s!" approaches. I didn't particularly care for either of them in this film. They certainly have their strengths, but the script and the characters limited their ability to be successful. David Hyde Pierce and Sarah Paulson are good supporting characters, but they too occasionally lose effectiveness due to the script.

This next paragraph could contain some spoilers or hint at potential spoilers, so please be warned. One of my biggest complaints with the film is the huge "twist" at the end. This is completely unexpected and shocking. Normally, I love those kinds of twists. Yet, this one completely invalidated much of what we've come to know about the characters. It also went in the face of the empowered woman who doesn't need a man philosophy. I'm not saying this is a worthwhile view, but I liked the way this film presented women as strong and successful and not needing to wrap their identity up in the men they were with. That's a great message, but the twist makes the whole thing seem pointless. I love that the film was able to pull the rug out from under me, but I didn't like what it did to the legitimacy of the story.

There's already quite a few flaws here, but the film as a whole is flawed as well. It feels like it takes an eternity to reach the end. Even at only 101 minutes, the film felt far too long. Besides the unexpected twist, we quickly figure out much of what will happen in the end. However, it takes an extraordinarily long time to get there. This is a movie that feels like it sets up an ending, and then continues for another 15 minutes. This was just a difficult movie for me to sit through. I wasn't engaged, I wasn't entertained, and it took effort for me to sit through the film.

Down With Love was an ambitious attempt and I appreciate the movie trying to do something different. However, I felt like it was horrendously flawed. It took too much work for me to pay attention and to try and stay engaged. This isn't a very good movie at all.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 5



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