I like the name Penelope. I don't know why, though perhaps Odysseus' wife has something to do with it. Anyways, seeing a movie called Penelope with Christina Ricci wearing a scarf and winter dress got me interested. James McAvoy was also a draw (though he's a far cry from his 'Split' self), so I gave this a shot.
The plot: Predictable. There was one attempt at a twist that I admittedly didn't see coming, but it was ultimately inconsequential as the major developments were by the numbers. The stakes never felt very high. There was no angry mob with pitchforks and torches hell bent on killing the pig creature, nor was the wedding merely a ruse by the bigoted Edward (played enjoyably unlikeable by the rare Simon Woods (who plays an enjoyably likeable Mr. Bingley in Pride And Prejudice)) to murder Penelope when she was alone. The biggest concern in this movie is "will Penelope have a pig nose forever?" which, paired with Christina Ricci's natural beauty, was really not that big a concern. Honestly, the snout was not that repulsive, though one can't expect a studio to want to mar the beauty of its leads for the audience, when these are the people paying the tickets. Penelope herself is written rather well, struggling with whether to be confident or insecure about her appearance. McAvoy's Max is a slightly less rounded character, whose reckless gambler persona is a little too quickly cast off for integrity and caution without the necessary pre-requisite soul searching and internal struggle present. The chemistry between the leads is not well developed enough to be too believable, even if the leads give i a good try.
The actors: Christina Ricci is beautiful. And also a little bland in my opinion. She can emote adequately, but her voice seems to stay at one pitch and tone throughout the film (most especially in the relentless voice overs). I don't know how hard it is to act with a prosthetic on your face, but she's kind of hit or miss depending on the scene (and it tells when I feel her blandest moments were the last ten minutes, after the nose had been removed).
James McAvoy as "Max Campion/Johnny Martin does well, though as stated earlier, his character is one thing, then another, with seemingly little to facilitate the change. He credits Penelope's confidence with inspiring him, but it still doesn't feel whole. Considering that the two interacted for mere days and then completely break contact for a while does not seem to be the groundworks for a serious relationship. If the filmmakers had even included a montage of more time spent together, I could believe it more, but alas. McAvoy does do disheveled well though, and his American accent was instantly convincing.
The supporting cast: Richard E. Grant plays easy going father well, and even has about thirty seconds to let out a dramatically frustrated moment that felt real and pent up, adding a layer to an otherwise bit part.
Catherine O'Hara plays her trademark hysterical mom which sometimes lands and is sometimes just obnoxious, though she likewise gets a tender moment to let more dramatic chops shine through.
Simon Woods plays snobby rich boy well, and his buffoonery and superficiality lend themselves for some good comedic bits.
Reese Witherspoon does fine, but her character is inserted so late into the film that I didn't quite see a point.
Peter Dinklage is a joy to watch in nearly everything I've seen with him. Hearing him do an American accent was a little shocking at first, but I got used to it after a moment, and his comedic chops outshone even O'Hara in my opinion, with his subtlety of humor being preferable to the latter's over the top performance.
The movie doesn't want to say what country it's in, and since it's classified as a "British/American production" I'm going to assume it's a mythical universe in which one country conquered the other. Regardless, the settings are interesting, part metropolis, part woodlands, and the overall atmosphere is that of a modern fairy tale, which makes some of the plot holes and minor gripes slightly more forgivable.
Overall, not an unpleasant use of an hour and a half, but if someone asks for a romcom recommendation, I'll definitely throw out While You Were Sleeping first.
The plot: Predictable. There was one attempt at a twist that I admittedly didn't see coming, but it was ultimately inconsequential as the major developments were by the numbers. The stakes never felt very high. There was no angry mob with pitchforks and torches hell bent on killing the pig creature, nor was the wedding merely a ruse by the bigoted Edward (played enjoyably unlikeable by the rare Simon Woods (who plays an enjoyably likeable Mr. Bingley in Pride And Prejudice)) to murder Penelope when she was alone. The biggest concern in this movie is "will Penelope have a pig nose forever?" which, paired with Christina Ricci's natural beauty, was really not that big a concern. Honestly, the snout was not that repulsive, though one can't expect a studio to want to mar the beauty of its leads for the audience, when these are the people paying the tickets. Penelope herself is written rather well, struggling with whether to be confident or insecure about her appearance. McAvoy's Max is a slightly less rounded character, whose reckless gambler persona is a little too quickly cast off for integrity and caution without the necessary pre-requisite soul searching and internal struggle present. The chemistry between the leads is not well developed enough to be too believable, even if the leads give i a good try.
The actors: Christina Ricci is beautiful. And also a little bland in my opinion. She can emote adequately, but her voice seems to stay at one pitch and tone throughout the film (most especially in the relentless voice overs). I don't know how hard it is to act with a prosthetic on your face, but she's kind of hit or miss depending on the scene (and it tells when I feel her blandest moments were the last ten minutes, after the nose had been removed).
James McAvoy as "Max Campion/Johnny Martin does well, though as stated earlier, his character is one thing, then another, with seemingly little to facilitate the change. He credits Penelope's confidence with inspiring him, but it still doesn't feel whole. Considering that the two interacted for mere days and then completely break contact for a while does not seem to be the groundworks for a serious relationship. If the filmmakers had even included a montage of more time spent together, I could believe it more, but alas. McAvoy does do disheveled well though, and his American accent was instantly convincing.
The supporting cast: Richard E. Grant plays easy going father well, and even has about thirty seconds to let out a dramatically frustrated moment that felt real and pent up, adding a layer to an otherwise bit part.
Catherine O'Hara plays her trademark hysterical mom which sometimes lands and is sometimes just obnoxious, though she likewise gets a tender moment to let more dramatic chops shine through.
Simon Woods plays snobby rich boy well, and his buffoonery and superficiality lend themselves for some good comedic bits.
Reese Witherspoon does fine, but her character is inserted so late into the film that I didn't quite see a point.
Peter Dinklage is a joy to watch in nearly everything I've seen with him. Hearing him do an American accent was a little shocking at first, but I got used to it after a moment, and his comedic chops outshone even O'Hara in my opinion, with his subtlety of humor being preferable to the latter's over the top performance.
The movie doesn't want to say what country it's in, and since it's classified as a "British/American production" I'm going to assume it's a mythical universe in which one country conquered the other. Regardless, the settings are interesting, part metropolis, part woodlands, and the overall atmosphere is that of a modern fairy tale, which makes some of the plot holes and minor gripes slightly more forgivable.
Overall, not an unpleasant use of an hour and a half, but if someone asks for a romcom recommendation, I'll definitely throw out While You Were Sleeping first.
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