Word: havoc
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Curtis and director Mike Newell (of "Enchanted April") concentrate so hard on getting the comic trappings of this story right (with frequent success) that they seem to lose track of the love story at hand. In the first half hour we witness the comedic havoc wrought upon the life of bachelor Charles (Hugh Grant) after he meets a beautiful American named Carrie (Andie MacDowell) at Wedding Number One. We find ourselves wondering why he is suddenly so smitten with a one-night stand...
Unfortunately, this question is never answered, as Andie MacDowell miserably fails to carry off the part of the havoc-wreaking femme fatale. MacDowell seems to have evolved little since her days as a L'Oreal-model-turned-actress. While she is as stunning as ever, she remains trapped in the mold of a silent, sullen object of beauty. Her sophisticated sadness worked well in movies where she was only meant to portray a beautiful object, ("The Legend of Greystoke," "St. Elmo's Fire," The Object of Beauty"). In "Sex, Lies, and Videotape" she won acclaim for her portrayal...
...enough that you wreak havoc in your own environment--wherever that may be? Must you corrupt this University's hallowed temple of knowledge, Widener Library? Hary Elkins is surely rolling in his watery grave. Please, at least have the courtesy to be quiet so that you and your study partner do not disturb others who want to research in peace. I am worried about you, Captain. Your "extracurriculars" must be taking time away from your studies. Please accept some responsibility. For instance, I see that you did not send a photo of yourself, like I had asked you last week...
...most telling moment in the hour or two of celluloid I sat through with a bunch of weird-looking film critics at a special screening of "The Chase" last week: not when a truck-load of corpses spilled onto the highway, creating "mass havoc," not when the heroine "comically" vomited out of her car window; not when Anthony Kiedis and Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers made a dorky cameo; not even when the two protagonists, a kidnapper and his hostage, had sex in a speeding car with thirty cops on their tail. No, it was none of these...
Fears of first-years running through the Yard and wreaking havoc on tourists are completely unfounded. Most of the action takes place inside dormitories; dining areas and classrooms are generally off limits. Furthermore, Harvard University should be treated as a place where undergraduates spend three or four years of their lives before it is treated as a tourist attraction...