Valentine’s Day Movie Review
By:Windy
By:Windy
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“Valentine’s Day”, directed by Gary Marshall and starring…well…everyone, is a Robert Altman-like film in that it focuses on several different developing stories that are all somehow intertwined. However, the film is light-hearted and not meant to be taken as seriously as an Altman film.
Initial reviews of “Valentine’s Day” have not been positive. I, therefore, went into the film with low expectations. To my surprise, the film was entertaining.
Julia Fitzpatrick and Dr. Harrison Copeland, played by Jennifer Garner and Patrick Dempsey, have “cutesy” on-screen chemistry. They are believable as a just-in-love goofy-acting couple. They might just be the best matched couple in the movie.
Jamie Foxx provides the regular comic relief in the film, with barely a single serious moment in his scenes. He perfectly plays the role of the scoop-searching sports newscaster who always ends up in the oddest of situations. Of course, ever since “Ray”, no movie is complete without Foxx singing at least a little…which he does in this film.
Sean Jackson, played by Eric Dane, is a football player with a losing season who has to decide which direction to take his career and life. Through a revelation on Valentine’s Day, he takes it in a direction the viewers never thought possible. Dane is believable as a professional football player, and could easily play a professional athlete in future films.
Paula Thomas, played by Queen Latifah, is quite good as Sean Jackson’s agent. Latifah is just bold and brash enough to bring that no-holds-barred agent attitude to the screen. Of course, this being a comedy, she does have a couple of good one-liners.
Though the most popular celebrities right now might be Taylor Lautner (“The Twilight Saga: New Moon”) and Taylor Swift (Grammy winner for “Album of the Year”), these two actors unfortunately didn’t bring much to “Valentine’s Day” except for poorly executed slapstick humor. Lautner shows off his martial arts moves, which by now most people know he can easily do, and Swift plays his air-headed, dance team girlfriend. Lautner needs to stop relying on his abs and his martial arts, and Swift needs to try to take on more serious roles. These two unfortunately took away from the more realistic couples presented in the film.
Ashton Kutcher has a major role in the movie as Reed Bennett, a flower-shop owner (the epicenter of mayhem on Valentine’s Day – onscreen or off). His performance was rather indifferent, but his character kept many of the other characters connected for the plot’s sake.
Other actors in the film who didn’t bring much to the plot are Jessica Alba, though she was needed in order to set up Kutcher’s character, Topher Grace, Anne Hathaway and Julia Roberts. The film could have easily gone on without these actors’ characters and shaved an unnecessary 30 minutes off of the film. With so many unnecessary characters, the film drags on at times and loses focus on some of the major plot lines.
The film overall was, as mentioned above, entertaining. It’s light-hearted and doesn’t require concentration to enjoy. It’s a nice getaway for an afternoon or evening.
Be sure to stick around for the credits, which contain outtakes. Roberts’ outtake should have been left in the film. It definitely would have made her character more memorable, and probably got more laughs than any part of the actual film.
5 ½ out of 10 sandwiches
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