FILM CHALLENGE: 70) Intolerable Cruelty

70) Intolerable Cruelty

Director: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

Year: 2003

Plot Summary: Miles Massey, a prominent Los Angeles divorce attorney, has everything. Yet despite his impressive client list, a formidable win record, the respect of his peers and an ironclad contract named after him, he's reached a crossroads in his life. Sated on success, boredom has set in and he's looking for new challenges. All that changes when Miles meets Marylin Rexroth.

The weakest of the Coen Brothers' movies, Intolerable Cruelty is a flawed and overly predictable romantic comedy. However, to say that I didn't enjoy it despite these glaring weaknesses would be a downright lie.

After all, in comparison to most of the rubbish the rom-com genre has brought us over the last few years, it's refreshing to see one that has some wit and intelligence behind the humour. In this respect, Intolerable Cruelty is almost like a flashback to the likes of The Apartment or Some Like It Hot with the Coen Brothers channelling the influence of Billy Wilder. Watching George Clooney deliver these lines, moreover, feels like you're watching some reincarnated version of the great Jack Lemmon with his slightly theatrical and over-the-top flair.

Furthermore, with reference to these films, it's a pleasure to see a romantic comedy that at least has some interest in its main characters. My issue with a lot of this genre of cinema is that you could practically take any character and place them in another movie and you wouldn't know the difference. There is nothing unique or special about them that makes them standout and they are utterly formulatic. However, here, Miles Massey is someone who you can emotionally relate to with his midlife crisis and his need for something new and challenging.

Unfortunately, while it does have its moments where it is very funny and while, at times, it has the charm and elegance of a classic Hollywood romantic comedy, the story is just a bit too cliched to really stick in your memory. You know where it's going from the very first few scenes and, although getting there is a humorous ride, the end result doesn't really do anything to change your predictions.

The biggest downfall of Intolerable Cruelty though is, oh would you believe it, Catherine Zeta Jones. When she's alongside the likes of George Clooney and Richard Jenkins who are both able to give their characters a human side whilst having perfect comic timing, it's all too noticeable just how awful she is. Of course, her character is unlikeable in this movie, but even more hateful is her emotionless, humourless acting. It's unfathomable that an actress can be outperformed by her jewellery, but she has amazingly been able to do it as I spent more time admiring her necklaces and how much they must have cost that looking at her cold, zombie-like face.

Funny and fairly entertaining, it's one of the better releases this genre of cinema has provided. But it's a rare stain on these directors' incredible catalogue of work - albeit not a big one - and something that you won't want to revisit regularly.

3/5

By Daniel Sarath with 1 comment