In February 2007, Eddie Murphy was riding high! He had been nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars for his career changing performance in Dreamgirls. Everyone was talking about how serious and dramatic he could be, and it looked like he was a lock to win the Oscar. Then, Norbit came out.
Norbit was the anti-Oscar movie filled with more potty humor than a janitorial conference, and Eddie sat there steaming on Oscar night when he lost. I still think voters didn't want to reward him after returning to the flatulence genre.
By starring in an Ashton Kutcher movie, has Natalie Portman
dared to tempt the Norbit curse and the wrath of Oscar voters?
Kutcher stars as Adam - a wannabe TV writer with a famous father, Alvin (Kevin Kline). Over the years, he has run into Emma (Portman), and kind of has a thing for her (because she is cute, hot, sexy, sassy and smart). However, Emma isn't interested in love. She proposes that the two of them become friends with benefits with no strings attached.
Will both of them be satisfied with a sex only relationship?
Before you walk in the door, you know where this plot is going to take you, and any one of you reading this review has probably figured that out. The only surprise is how naughty our little future Oscar princess is acting! She's a naughty naughty girl!
Director Ivan Reitman gets the movie started with plenty of laughs as writer Elizabeth Meriwether tosses in as much mischievousness as possible. Unfortunately, they move No Strings Attached into serious territory too quickly and in an overpowering way. Reitman should be more subtle when transitioning from comedy to drama, but does it with a heavy hand instead.
Worst of all, Reitman and Meriwether fail to give the audience a reason for Emma's reticence. Adam, playfully brought to life by Kutcher, is a sweet, romantic, sexy dude, yet, Emma fights the love at every step. Why? We need a good reason to make it believable, and don't get one.
Some of the comedy relies too much on inappropriateness instead of hilarity, but I'd rather have the comedy instead of the overly dramatic stuff.
2 Waffles (Out of 4)
No Strings Attached is rated R for sexual content, language and some drug material.
