Intolerable Cruelty film review

certificate_12A

INTOLERABLE CRUELTY

After the commercial and critical success of O Brother, Where Art Thou?, the Coen Brothers have reteamed with George Clooney for a screwball comedy about highly paid divorce lawyers. But the spark is missing this time around: this is very minor Coen Brothers fare that is only likely to appeal to diehard fans.

Clooney plays Miles Massey, divorce attorney to the rich and famous. Obsessed with his natty suits and sparkling teeth, Miles wins all of his cases: even where the evidence is overwhelming the Massey charm can happily fail to make it stand up in court. But when he meets his new client, Marilyn Rexroth (Caterine Zeta-Jones), the inevitable happens and Miles falls in love with one of his clients. But is she simply out to skin him for all he is worth?

The film starts brightly with a very funny cameo from Geoffrey Rush as a washed up daytime tv producer intent on divorcing his cheating spouse. But as soon as the scenes between Clooney and Zeta-Jones begin, it's clear that there are a couple of big problems. Firstly, the lack of chemistry between the two is all too evident. Zeta-Jones pouts through the film as if she believes she is recreating a legendary screwball heroine, but her characterisation is all show and no depth.

Secondly, and surprisingly by the usual Coen standards, it's simply not that funny. While there are some laughs to be had from the under-used Rush scenes, they soon peter out into a bemused silence. Much of the traditional left-field humour we have come to expect from these highly creative brothers feels forced down our throats, and worst of all they seem to be falling into the trap of believing their own hype. The gags that fail count is pretty high.

This is hopefully a minor dip, and probably due to the fact that this is a rare Coen Brothers film where they did not write the script, and were contracted as guns for hire when Clooney brought it to their attention. As usual fans of the brothers will hear no wrong against them and undoubtedly gush about the film's cleverness, but it's just this very element that is likely to put off the majority of viewers.