Tag Archives: Worst Film

The Other Woman (2014)

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20140425TheOtherWoman3Roze-Rating: 1.5 / 5

Carly (Cameron Diaz), Kate (Leslie Mann) and Amber (Kate Upton) have one thing in common, they are all seeing the same man, Mark (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau). Even though they all meet in this awkward circumstance, they form a strong friendship which prompts their goal of destroying Mark’s life. What follows is a mixture of emotions for Kate who finds a life without her husband hard to digest but eventually with the help of her two new friends she learns that she deserves better.

This film reminds me of those old school comedies we used to get that only ever offered cheesy dialogue and cheap laughs, but they were strangely satisfying. Films like Daddy Day Care and Meet The Fockers, they weren’t exactly creative in the plot department but they executed their brand of humor in the best way possible. The Other Woman initially seems vapid from its trailers but could have turned out quite empowering for anyone who is unfortunate enough to be with a manipulative cheater. I felt it was stuck in between wanting to tell a light hearted story with a strong message and being a quirky comedy. Ultimately it doesn’t offer either of these things despite it’s efforts. The problem with the comedy is that it feels outdated, with the likes of Neighbors, 22 Jump Street and This is the End, comedies like The Other Woman really need to step it up. I mean the poop jokes are so overdone nowadays, in terms of ways to torture a guy, the possibilities are endless and that’s why the lack of imagination is really disappointing. That being said it seemed to get a relatively positive audience response with a 65% score on Rotten Tomatoes, this could be because of a strong female cast, Kate Upton’s Bay Watch moment or people actually enjoyed this film. I can’t say I agree with the audience tomato meter on this one.

We are given three different characters with considerably different personalities, we have Leslie Mann playing a housewife, Cameron Diaz as a strong minded lawyer and Kate Upton as the girl next door. Having this type of diversity supports its message, saying that no matter who you are, no woman deserves to be used or needs a man to depend on. It would have been effective if the characters weren’t so one dimensional. This is no criticism to the actors because they did well with what they were given, I just think if the film had a clearer direction and really empowered the trio by illustrating its message consistently and having a coherent ending, then it could have been heaps better. Leslie Mann actually has some great moments in the film, where she’s hesitant about leaving her husband, moments that are grounded and realistic as it’s a situation that would be hard to accept for anyone. Moments like that gave the film some potential, to add layers to a story which is largely thin. Talking about moments, Nicki Minaj surprised me immensely. She must have a knack for acting because she seemed so down to earth and reserved, which is not the Nicki Minaj we all know, I weirdly want to see more from her.

As a comedy The Other Woman doesn’t really work for me, there are a few laughs here and there, but for such a talented cast who have experience with comedy, they didn’t utilize them at their full potential. I’d rather see Leslie Mann improv more or bring out Kate Upton’s quirky personality that we’re all so fond of, than see a guy crap his pants. As for a film that empowers women, it too false very short. There’s a scene where Leslie Mann’s character throws her wedding ring into the sea to an emotional song, a scene which is intended to be a defining moment for her character but it runs like a music video, completely cheapening the moment, which represents what the film is as a whole.

Runner Runner (2013)

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runner-runner-review-photoRoze-Rating: 2.5 / 5

Richie Furst (Justin Timberlake) used to have a job on Wall Street until the economic meltdown forced him out of the business. To make his way back up to a high paying job again, he refers university students to an online gambling website to finance his masters degree. After getting caught and threatened to be kicked out of Princeton, Furst carelessly bets his money away on an online poker site with hopes of gaining enough winnings to pay his tuition fees. He soon discovers that he had been beaten unfairly and goes straight to the source to rectify it, Ivan Block (Ben Affleck).

Runner Runner was probably the longest hour and a half film that I’ve sat through this year, which says a lot. It’s disappointing as the film has a promising premise. The opening initially set up the potential for a decent flick but its intelligent characters ultimately didn’t fit in with the shallow narrative.

The film could have been genuinely thrilling as it had the ingredients for an explosive thriller. It had interesting characters and an uncommon premise. But the film feels bland as it has no particular direction or form of development. Ultimately it’s a film telling a series of events. What it needed was more emphasis on Richie and even Rebecca (Gemma Arterton), as the film covers the themes of greed and entrapment within the criminal world. They grow as characters but Runner Runner doesn’t even explore these themes or even the development of these characters. In the end we don’t really know who Richie is.

He’s obviously attracted by the prospect of high finance and because of that he doesn’t do the most ethical things. Although he believes in fair gaming in the business sense and is also a business wiz, yet we see him partake in immoral forms of business negotiations. There’s contradictions in his values because of money. So I was expecting some form of change from his character once sh*t got real, but only until he sees his life in danger does he change, but that’s a totally meaningless reason. The only meaningful moment in the film is when Richie’s dad tells him to leave him behind since he’s been a “dead man walking for 15 years”. That is the only defining moment where Richie realizes greed’s negative effect. But by that time, it’s way too late.

The only positive within this film is Gemma Arterton (duuh) and the locations. Both are stunning and sun kissed. The cinematography is colourful and glossy which make’s Runner Runner easy on the eyes. That being said we should have seen more of Arterton, not because she wears those dresses flawlessly (probably accounts for quarter of my rating) but because I think her character could have had a bigger impact on the story. Though it still would have taken more to improve this flick.