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Serendipity

Serendipity

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Five Thumbs Up!
Review: The beautiful story of faight has made the two brilliant movie stars appear even more powerful, then they have been. The movie flows with what happens. Therefore, I will give it five thumbs up.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack make a terrific team!!
Review: Hmmm, what do I think about "Serendipity"? Well, I thought that it was one of the absolute best romantic films that I have seen this year! "Serendipity" was so sweet and downright funny that you would have to see it again and again! As for the acting, I thought that Kate Beckinsale did a superb job as Sara and John Cusack was excellent as Jonathan. The other actors, Jeremy Piven (Cusack's best friend), Molly Shannon (Beckinsale's best friend), "Coyote Ugly's" Bridget Moynahan (Cusack's fiancee), John Corbett (Beckinsale's fiancee), and Eugene Levy (Bloomingdale's salesman) were outstanding as well. "Serendipity" focuses on Sara and Jonathan (Beckinsale, Cusack) who meet by accident in Bloomingdale's during Christmas. They talk for a few hours, then they part ways. And yet, the only way that they would meet back together is if fate decides for them, etc. In conclusion, I would like to say that "Serendipity" is in the same romantic spirit as the always great "Sleepless in Seattle". I mean, it's like John Cusack is the Tom Hanks and Kate Beckinsale is the Meg Ryan in this movie. This is, without a doubt, Kate Beckinsale's best film since "Cold Comfort Farm" and "Pearl Harbor", and John Cusack's best film since "High Fidelity" and "Con Air". "Serendipity" is truly one of the best romantic comedies that you'll see since "Sleepless".

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The romantic comedy of the year!
Review: Everything you've believed about fate may not change once you've seen "Serendipity," which uses just about every trick in destiny's book to its advantage, but that doesn't mean that you won't have a good time. For true romantics and firm believers in fate, this is a sure-fire hit, while those who have no faith in chance will sneer. If you happen to be like me, you will suspend disbelief and accept the movie's reliance on all things coincidental, and just enjoy the movie for what it is: a winning piece of romance, laughter, and warmth.

Underneath the destiny premise is a basic, by-the-numbers plot with trademark characters and subplots. Beginning on a fateful night in New York City (and yes, the Twin Towers have been removed), we are introduced to Sara (Kate Beckinsdale), and John (John Cusack), two single people who spend the evening getting to know one another as they share a dream date of ice skating and coffee at a small restaurant named (of all things) Serendipity.

Just when it looks as if our two smitten kittens have become enraptured with one another, Sara plays hard to get, suggesting that if they really are meant to be together, then fate will take its course in bringing them back to one another. He writes his name down on a five dollar bill, which she uses to buy breath mints; destiny, she explains, will determine whether she gets that five dollars back again or not. She then tells him that she will write her name and number in a book, then sell it to a used book store... you get the picture, and they part ways.

Skip ahead a few years, and our two star-crossed lovers have moved on in life: John is days away from being married, while Sara, who now lives in San Francisco, has just become engaged to a musician of the weirdest sort. Of course, John cannot help but take a peek at every bookstore he walks past, while Sara gives hopeful glances at lingering five dollar bills... you get the picture.

When asked if I liked this picture, I answered with a wholehearted yes. After a summer filled with dead-end blockbusters, stunning suspense tinglers, and fresh comedies, "Serendipity" offers its audience a chance to embrace predictability instead of turning away from it. Every aspect of the plot is easily seen ahead of time by those who know their romantic comedies, but this works in the movie's favor, allowing us to kick back and have a good time without any demands on our mind's thought processes.

This is all made extremely likeable by the charming performances from the two leads, who add a great deal of feeling to their characters. Cusack shows a good amount of emotional capacity, enough so that we are willing to go along with his struggle to find his destined soul mate. Beckinsdale, who is quite becoming of the film, plays Sara's change of heart about fate and destiny to perfection, and then one-ups herself when her character again changes her mind and decides to locate John.

As the movie becomes a will-they-or-won't-they-end-up-together romance, we find ourselves in an arena of familiarity. The story supplies Sara and John each a typical best friend, who provide emotional support, and both of whom play a small key role in bringing the two together. In their search for one another, Sara and John will have so many close calls and near-misses (at one point, Sara steps into a taxi just as John runs behind it) that it makes the whole film seem absurd and ludicrous.

The surprise is, however, that it isn't. "Serendipity" is a refreshing piece of fluff that plays by the rules in all the right ways. The predictability of the material is in the film's favor, making no demands on the audience to sort things out. The story is given a verve and tenacity that sparkles like the snows of the Big Apple, while there is humor and sheer whimsy in every aspect of this fantastic fairy tale of chance. Couple that with some strong, inviting leads, and you have a formula for the most successful romantic comedy of the year.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Much Better John
Review: We walked out of this film smiling, feeling good. That's a great beginning for a story. John Cusack was SOOO much better than his last film, America's Sweethearts. While the story was predictable, it was well written with great character development and a great job done at weaving the idea of fate/destiny/ serendipity into the plot. It's a light, happy romantic comedy-- a great date movie-- or one to watch when you just want some light escape which will touch your heart and make you feel good.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Right Movie Wrong critics
Review: The critics have done it again. They have taken a fun movie and called it predictable, trivial, drawn out. It is predictable and it is trivial. But its a movie and movies can be trivial. We have enough to worry about in the world today without expecting our entertainment to have "redeeming social values".The movie is believable with a story line capable of keeping you entertained.If you want to see a fun love story with two excellent actors (Beckinsale is ravishing) take a date (or wife) to see Serendipity. And let the critics worry about whether or not it's "trivial".

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Serendipity is Bad Karma
Review: John Cusack has always been great in movies where he is required to be as clever as the story. He is too resourceful and quirky of an actor to make anything out of passe roles created by uninventive storytelling, and that is just one many problems plaguing Serendipity. This movie is unoriginal, uninspired and so utterly predictable that I was 30 minutes ahead of it from its first credit.
Serendipity is a movie about the capriciousness of fate, how destiny takes all of us to unexpected places, and its hard for a movie to sell those points if its broadcasting all of its plot twists well in advance. This is a movie that doesn?t just play by the rules of its genre, it more accurately seems like the writer composed a list of romantic comedy conventions, and wrapped a plot around them.
The performances are decent but simple, like the actors figured a script so unremarkable wasn?t worth their efforts. There isn?t an actor in the film who looks happy to be here, Cusack almost seems embarrassed. Molly Shannon (SNL) and Jeremy Piven (Grosse Pointe Blank) make the most of their meager and underwritten roles, managing to become the most memorable things about the movie, which is not necessarily a compliment.
The direction is on autopilot, derivative of a thousand Nora Ephron (Sleepless in Seattle, You?ve Got Mail) movies before it. Director Peter Chelsom takes no risks here, and I think its because he was afraid to. His last movie was Town and Country, a dismal Warren Beatty flop that he worked on for 3 years, and which received one of the harshest critical drubbings of any movie this year (myself included). Still, at least that movie aimed high and fell short, this one has only the basest aspirations. In hindsight I have no problem with Chelsom not trying, as no amount of effort in the world could make this film palatable.
Serendipity takes the talent of one of my favorite actors and wastes it on a story unworthy of an NBC movie of the week. It isn?t a film as much as it is a blueprint for genre conventions, an example of how not to make a romantic comedy, and a test to see how much pain today?s audiences can endure.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great if you haven't seen the previews
Review: This movie is very good and is a great "date movie". Cusak and Beckinsale are adorable. However, I was disappointed as I felt like I was seeing it for a second time since they had given so much away in the trailer. I wish I had waited to rent it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wow
Review: When I saw this movie it really glued me to me seat. It's definitatly a chick flick. It's a love story with a twist of faith. Personaly I loved this movie but for someone who likes to guess what happens next this is not a movie for you. If your not married and have no love life whatsoever (no offense) this movie might be right for you.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Unrealistic but sweet!!
Review: OK! OK! That is hollywood. What are the chances that a guy and a gal meet in NYC, fall in love, lose touch, and a decade later find each other? One in a billion!

The movie "Serendipity" is absolutely a fantasy. Those sort of things could happen but it is very unlikely. In anyways, the movie is cute and entertaining. Not to mention the fact that Kate Beckinsale is absolutely gorgeous. I liked the movie over all. If she had been running after me instead of Cusack at the end of the flick, I would have been in paradise. Come to me Kate! The movie was good because it combined romance with comedy, giving the movie a double flavor. I would recommend anyone to see this movie because it is mellow. It is not violent, no profanity, and it is clean. After the terrorist attacks, we need to see something soft. Serendipity is it!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Romantic!
Review: It was a very wonderful film! The acting was great. Some of the parts in the movie were just so annoying because they would just miss seeing eachother. It was very romantic! The movie was excellent! I wanted to see it over and over again, but did not. It had comedy and romance. This movie was deffenatly a five star movie! It is rare that I go to a movie, this was deffenatly worth the money!


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