Something's Gotta Give film review

certificate_12A

SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE

Something's Gotta Give is the archetypal fantasy dreamed up by a middle aged divorcée. What mature woman hasn't envisioned being seduced by a handsome young doctor or taming a notorious lothario? For writer and director Nancy Meyers, who was also responsible for the declarative and trite What Women Want, Something's Gotta Give is obviously an exercise in wish fulfillment. It may have been designed to offer hope to all those facing the prospect of a lonely dotage, but its Mills And Boon approach is so unconvincing that only the true hopeless romantic would find it anything but ludicrous.

Quite how closely Meyers' life resembles that of central figure Erica Berry (Diane Keaton) is hard to determine, though there are obvious similarities. Both are successful writers in their mid fifties with one failed marriage behind them. One thing's for certain, for all the stereotypical facets of Berry's character, she at least is the only one with three dimensions. The others are so thinly sketched that they provide little to engage with and nothing for the distinguished cast to work with.

It's a little unclear quite what tone the film is trying to strike. At times it comes across as an old style romantic comedy, one that only has a slim link with reality. At others it strikes a more cynical, cruder note. This confusion is reflected in the performances, with some adopting a more earthy approach while others float through as if it's a fairy tale.

At its core is Berry, an uptight Broadway playwright with a daughter Marin (Amanda Peet) from her long since failed marriage to Dave (Paul Michael Glaser). Erica's comfy, ordered life is thrown into disarray when Marin brings the celebrated womanizer Harry Sanborn (Jack Nicholson) to her mother's weekend beachfront getaway to cement their relationship. Thinking they had the place to themselves, the couple is surprised to discover Erica there with her sister (Frances McDormand), but not as surprised as Erica is to discover her daughter dating the 63-old playboy known as the "escape artist" for his ability to avoid commitment.