AT THE MOVIES WITH KASEY BUTCHER

February 12, 2010 Kasey Butcher

In When in Rome, Beth (Kristen Bell) is a driven museum curator who is unlucky in love. When she flies to Rome for her sister’s whirlwind wedding she quickly develops feelings for the best man, Nick (Josh Duhamel), until she sees him kissing another woman. She drunkenly decides to pick up four coins out of the Fontana de Amore, where, tradition has it, people make wishes and find love. By taking the coins out of the fountain, however, Beth has ensured that those five men will fall for her and pursue her all the way back to New York. When struggling artist Antonio (Will Arnett), street magician Lance (Jon Heder), sleazy model Gale (Dax Shepard), and businessman Al (Danny DeVito) start showing up wherever she goes and Nick starts to fall head over heels, Beth realizes she’s in way over her head.

Artistically, When in Rome is pretty bad. The characters are not at all complex. Nick is too perfect, and ambitious as she is, Beth doesn’t seem to need to change either. I mean, she even flosses twice a day. There’s no real conflict in the story except that Beth needs to break the spell so she can let Nick fall in love with her for real. Aside from a pesky Roman fountain, everyone’s life seems to be going just fine. Further, the pacing was a bit off. Everything in the movie happened so quickly, there was never a downbeat to think about or savor what was going on. That being said, the performances are charming. Kristen Bell makes a kind of obnoxious character likable and does well as the stable center in all the slapstick. Josh Duhamel is charismatic and a natural leading man. I was far more entertained by his way of “being Italian” than by his wife’s (Fergie of Nine). Danny DeVito, Will Arnett, Dax Shepard, and Jon Heder work well together and infuse the movie with a lot of hilarity without taking the physical comedy too far. In short, I laughed like a crazy person. It was a fun night at the theater.

I’ve never seen a movie’s credits detract from the ending of a film quite this much. The rehearsal footage at the end of Nine was pretty awful, but the gimmicky song and dance at the end of When in Rome just pushed the level of stupidity surrounding this movie over the top.

I’m really torn about how many stars to give this movie because, while the story was pretty silly and the characters pretty flat, in spite of how dumb it was, When in Rome was hilarious and a joy to watch. «««/5

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Also in theaters is Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire. Precious is the story of a Claireece “Precious” Jones (Oscar nominee Gabourey Sidibe), an illiterate 16-year old from Harlem, who is pregnant with her second child by her absentee father. Precious lives with her mother, Mary (Oscar nominee Mo’Nique), who is verbally and physically abusive. When Precious is asked to leave her school because she is pregnant again, she is enrolled in Each One, Teach One, an alternative school where she will work towards her GED with Ms. Rain (Paula Patton), a compassionate and dedicated teacher determined to help Precious break away from the abuse and adversity that is holding her down. The tagline for the movie says it all: “Life is hard. Life is short. Life is painful. Life is rich. Life is…Precious.” Precious’ story is briefly lightened by the daydream fantasies of love and fame that help her block out her abuse, but more than anything it is a narrative of incredible pain and the desire to be somebody who is loved and heard in spite of it.

Precious is nominated for six Academy Awards (Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Directing, Best Editing, and Best Adapted Screenplay), all of which are deserved. Difficult to watch as it is, the movie is beautifully made and skillfully acted. Gabourey Sidibe is astoundingly good in her first film role. She brings an “everygirl” quality to the character that makes her so lovable and compelling to watch. Sidibe’s portrayal of Precious is alternately depressed and hopeful in subtle ways that make the character feel so real. As her mother, Mo’Nique is thoroughly detestable until one particularly well-acted scene in which she starts to draw on the audience’s sympathy in especially uncomfortable ways.

Precious is a tense film. The settings are dim, the content is heartbreaking, and the language is abrasive. With all the parts that made me uncomfortable, when I walked away from the movie, teary-eyed, the overall impression I had of the film was of how beautiful it was. This is the kind of movie that sticks with you for days because it immerses you in a story and a character in a really touching and haunting way. Precious is extraordinary. «««««/5

I finally saw Avatar, which was nominated for nine Academy Awards. All I can say is that I want my 162 minutes back, Mr. Cameron. Some of that $300 million could have been spent on a more original and compelling screenplay. ««/5

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Kasey Butcher

She is proud to be a Ft. Wayne native, a graduate of Homestead HS, Ball State University & Miami University.She became involved with journalism editor-in-chief for her high school magazine. She authors the "At The Movies with Kasey Butcher" review.

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