What to Expect When You're Expecting

“What to Expect When You’re Expecting” is a film based on the successful best seller of the same name by author Helen Murkoff. Not content with letting the accolades remain in the literary property area, some producers (e.g. Mike Medavoy et.al) had the idea of casting Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, Mathew Morrison, Elizabeth Banks  and others in a film supposedly sharing the trials and tribulations of expectant Moms and reluctant and anxious Dads. Directed by Kirk Jones and written by Shauna Cross and Heather Hoch, the movie simply doesn’t work. The 110 minutes of actual screen time seemed longer than the 9 months each of these ladies had to carry their respective offspring. Discombobulated and awkward in its editing, acting and plot, this film gets just one star and, even then, I feel overly generous in awarding it.  I guess the answer to what to expect from “What to Expect…….”is a loss of time, money and the inconvenience of having to travel to the theater to suffer them.. No pregnancy could ever seem longer or more uncomfortable than watching this cinematic nightmare…  .and thinking about the film the next day will almost certainly guarantee you “morning sickness”.

Bernie

“Bernie” stars Jack Black, Shirley MacLaine and Mathew McConaughey in this-black comedy which plays more like a documentary, especially since it utilizes many of the actual townspeople in Carthage, Texas where the true life occurrences took place. Directed by Richard Linklater and co-written by Mr. Linklater and Skip Hollandsworth, this movie is based on an article that Mr. Hollandsworth wrote for the  Texas Monthly magazine in 1998. Although Jack Black is not my favorite leading man, he does exhibit a wide and interesting range of acting in his portrayal of the main character in the film. Perhaps the defect in the movie is not so much the acting or the presentation but the lack of any depth or substance. This explains why what occurred in this small Texas town of 6500 people was only  described and written about in a magazine article…there just isn’t enough here for a full length theatrical feature. I give the film 2 and ½ stars for its effort and uniqueness. It’s a film that could have explored the complexity of the character played by Mr. Black instead of just reciting events as they took place and for that reason I found it, like the magazine article, short on substance.

Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

“Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” was written by O.L. Parker and is based on the novel “These Foolish Things” by Deborah Moggach. The cast is a ‘who’s who” of seasoned British talent starring Tom Wilkinson, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith and Bill Nighby and needs the full 2 hours and 20 minutes of time it takes to merge these fine thespians into the plots and subplots that Director Madden so nicely paces. The story of senior citizens relocating to a hopefully better and more meaningful life transcends the location although Jaipur, India is where this all takes place. Predictable in many respects and adorning its “feel good” halo, the film nevertheless holds our interest and involvement despite its length. Putting aside the rehashed jokes that make their way into the film every so often, there are moments of profundity that those of us eligible for AARP membership will appreciate and understand. Perhaps that is why the film works. I give the film 3 stars. Hopefully its commercial success will bring about the production of more such films where those in our demographic category will have better fare to choose from when we decide to go to the movies. After all, time is running out and as Ms. Smith’s character recites: “I don’t even buy green bananas”.