REVIEWS
Date Movie
MOVIE
A very wise character named David St. Hubbins once said, "There is such a fine line between stupid and clever." I would usually agree wholeheartedly with the
lead singer of Spinal Tap, but in the case of Date Movie, a Scary Movie for romantic comedies, that "fine line" is as wide as a river.
Julia Jones (Alyson Hannigan) is an overweight waitress working at her father's diner (My Big Fat Greek Wedding).She meets
Fragrantly, she meets a somewhat handsome British Hansell-looking-alike (a la Zoolander) and, in order to catch his eye, goes to see the "date doctor," Hitch (Hitch). Once she wins his heart, she must deal with sparring parents (Meet the Parents) and her fiancé's conniving best friend (My Best Friend's Wedding).
Many other references, puns and scenes refer to the bountiful genre of romantic comedies. Others come out of nowhere, like references to Kill Bill, or are thrown in haphazardly (e.g. Napoleon Dynamite and Wedding Crashers). Most
of these "Jokes" make you cringe, wince, roll your eyes or want to leave the theater rather than make you laugh. My only true guffaw came courtesy of Chris Harrison,
host of The Bachelor,
because I was shocked
they actually got him to
appear.
But back to the "fine line between stupid and clever." Date Movie shows no hint of cleverness, just plain stupidity and crassness. It prefers to beat you over the head with pop culture citations (Paris Hilton's Carl's Jr. burger commercial) and
fill-timed rap songs, all of which cause a disgusted shake of the head.
I mistakenly had high hopes for Date Movie. I hoped it would treat pop culture satire with respect, like Shrek. I even recommended it in "Jayplay Says." All I can say now is ... I'm sorry.
South Wind 12 Rated:PG-13,80 minutes
★
Lindsey Ramsey