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Chasing Liberty (Widescreen Edition)

Chasing Liberty (Widescreen Edition)

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good chemistry between the stars but a weak script and end
Review: I know there was a movie made about the mad cap adventures of the President's son, namely the 1996 film "First Kid," but for the most part Hollywood prefers stories in which the president has a daughter, whether you are talking comedies (1998's "My Date with the President's Daughter") or dramas (this year's "Spartan"). Of course the current president has twin daughters and the previous president had a daughter as an only child, so it is not like the idea is unrealistic. But given that the president is flying from one daughter's college graduation to that of the other this week while the nation has military forces in several Middle Eastern countries, when "The West Wing" begins the season with one of the president's daughters kidnapped by Middle Eastern terrorists it makes me extremely nervous because surely there are real people out there in the real world thinking along similar lines. Never before in the history of the Republic has being the daughter of the President of the United States been as dangerous as it is right now.

If Anna Foster (Mandy Moore), the first daughter in the romantic comedy "Chasing Liberty" 2004 lived in the real world she would have a decidedly different view of her life. But for her the worst thing in the world is trying to have a "normal" date while still in high school. That is pretty hard when the Secret Service lets her date drive through the White House gate but then trashes the flowers he brought looking for who knows what nefarious devices or biological entities. Anna, whose code name is "Liberty" for ironic reasons that matter to the film but would never occur to the Secret Service, is not happy with her father (Mark Harmon), so she tries to wrangle a deal. When the family goes to Prague for an economic summit she will get to hang out with Gabrielle (Beatrice Rosen), the daughter of the French ambassador and do normal teenage things with only two Secret Service agents, Weiss (Jeremy Piven) and Morales (Annabella Sciorra).

Despite the warnings of her mother (Caroline Goodall) never to make a deal with a politician, Anna believes her father will honor the deal, so when she discovers that she is having a good time once again surrounded by agents, she bolts from the place and hops on the back of the motorcycle with the good looking guy. His name is Ben Calder (Matthew Goode), and he is only too happy to scurry Anna away from her watchers. This is not only because she is a good-looking young woman with a nice smile, but also because he is also a Secret Servent agent (in other words, we are doing a version of "It Happened One Night"). It seems the President was thinking ahead for such circumstances and orders Calder to let Anna engage in her youthful acts of rebellion without ever telling her the truth.

The rest of "Chasing Liberty" should be clear to you at this point. Even the bickering between agents Weiss and Morales is rather predictable in how it will play out as well. However this film has a couple of things going in its favor. First, there are the European locations. Anna and Ben travel from Prague to Berlin, via Venice no less, so if young women watching the film never want to be the daughter of the President a trip to Europe will surely be high on their list. Second, Moore and Calder have good chemistry going for them. She can go skinny-dipping in the Danube and still be a sweet girl while he actually seems smart enough to take care of them while they are running around central Europe.

Along the way they meet the sort of interesting people you expect to find on the continent. There is a hippie type named McGruff (Martin Hancock) who has a rather neat idea for spreading happiness around the world and a gondolier wannabe (Joseph Long) who gets to help out our young couple. Of course with many of these adventures you keep waiting for the Secret Service side of Ben to come through and stop Anna from doing some of the things she does, but where would be the fun in that? Moore is enticing enough to keep rooting for her throughout the film and forgive many of the film's problems, but then we get to the finish.

A good finish can forgive a great many cinematic sins. The past couple of months I have been comparing the endings of a lot of films to that of "Uptown Girls," by no means a classic film, but with an effective conclusion that brought together a whole bunch of plot elements. "Chasing Liberty" sets up the opportunity for some sort of grand romantic gesture at the end, but aside from an interesting duet version of the operatic aria "Nessun Dorma" there is nothing special here and there should have been. Moore, who is going to be acting long after most of the rest of the current crop of young singers turned actresses are on the "Whatever happened to?" list, carries most of this film by herself, with Goode helping when the story allows, but in the end the script should have helped her bring this film home.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great, Super Fun Flick
Review: This is such a fun movie! After seeing Mandy in "How To Deal," I was a little hesitant about this movie. Don't get me wrong, Mandy is fantastic no matter what-- her screen presence is amazing, sincere, and every bit as great as those super famous A-list movie stars, but sometimes the film itself just isn't that good. "Chasing Liberty" is a breath of fresh air for Mandy fans and film fans alike. It's less about plot and more about character, which is so great I wish Hollywood would embrace witty dialogue over a burning building.

Mandy plays Anna Foster, daughter of the President. When her dad's "secret servants" ruin her lovely dinner date that she spent hours getting ready for, she rushes into the Oval Office declaring a little independence. They come to a truce-- When they are in Prague, she will get to attend a concert with just TWO agents, instead of the whole swarm. Unfortunately, you can't make the President promise anything, and when Anna learns that her dad did indeed send more agents than what they agreed, she hits the road with a hunky photographer. (Played by newcomer cutie Matthew Goode) So a massive chase ensues with the secret service attempting to keep tabs on Anna as she gallivants through Europe, enjoying the freedom she so desperately wanted.

There's alot to love about this movie-- Mandy is terrific, and Matthew Goode definitely delivers. There is also a cute side-story involving two agents, one played by the hilarious Jeremy Piven, who deserves much more screen time than he normally gets. Also-- some cool DVD features, including deleted scenes and bloopers (where we get plenty of Jeremy Piven!) Watch this one because you're bound to like this charming story.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: So much better than I expected
Review: This movie was so much better than I expected it to be! I loved Mandy Moore in A Walk to Remember and enjoyed How To Deal, so I thought I'd give this movie a chance.

If you overlook the slightly farfetched plot, you find a really honest performance by Moore. Really, a beautiful and light-hearted romantic comedy that had me laughing out loud.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: More of Mandy Moore please
Review: This is a likable, yet utterly predictable, teen romance film. The plot is very familiar, but Mandy Moore is still a joy to watch. She's one of the most honest, talented entertainers on the market today and anything she touches is golden. If you want a better Mandy Moore film, however, check out HOW TO DEAL.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: tony's review
Review: locations are great, mandy moore is growing up. no longer a tall gangly girl, but quiet the beautiful woman. what ever it is she's got it. her screen presence is huge, the story is not menat to be an academy award winner, but it is cute moves well and i enjoyed goode as well. i consider myself a movie buff and have already recommended it to my friends.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Mandy's new look
Review: I've never been a fan of Mandy Moore's music. Not that she doesn't have a good voice, her songs just never appealed to me. She's a great actress though, she has a natural and charming screen presence and with her new shorter, darker haircut is extremely cute. Matthew Goode, her costar, is quite hot, and who doesn't find that accent exceedingly sexy!! I love this romantic comedy of a movie, and the locations were stunning. The Passport to Europe extra feature narrated by Mandy was cool, because I've never been to those places but now I'd really like to visit. The additional scenes are cute, you'll want to check those out. I didn't care much for the Roots concert feature but then again I don't care much for the Roots. The commentary on the movie by Matthew and Mandy is funny and sweet, they both seem like really cool people you would love to hang out with. Jeremy Piven (from the great but short lived tv show Cupid) is in the movie with his lady love fellow agent Morales, they're adorable and both have good comic timing. I love Anna's (Mandy) theories, like that the things that scare you are usually the ones most worth doing and that if it's meant to happen it will. It's a fun movie about taking chances and finding love, I think it's a great buy.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Short & Sweet
Review: This was a pleasant surprise. A feel good, make ya smile movie.
Don't be so stinking judgemental of each other, take time to get to know one another. Love...its all about compromising. Cute movie with something to think about.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Lightweight Liberty
Review: Though the plot of this movie was unrealistic. I couldn't help but like the movie. Both Mandy Moore who is known for Walk to Remember and How to Deal made this movie credible. Not without mention the two secret agents who were hired to follow the president daughter they were funny and entertaining. Matthew Goode performance was fine but he's has a long way to go. Mark Hamon was great as well. Special features of DVD Pasport to Europe was fantastic. While is not the best it's not the worst

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: 2 stars. if so
Review: I am a young person, but this movie just didn't tickle me in any way. I like Mandy Moore and sure she does a fine acting job for the kind of movie she does, but this movie wasn't the best.

For one, it was totally unrealistic in NOT a good way. She is the presidents daughter, and because of that her freedom is limited. She gets a ride from a boy on a motorcycle, acts crazy, and the movie ends from there. The boy ends up being a secret agent who is protecting her on purpose. She has some drinks, gets drunk, exposes her bare ass, and the guy still falls in love with her.

Obviously, it's a love story and the two do fall in love...

The movie wasn't my favorite even though the male actor Matthew Goode looks good. Obviously, that doesn't make a movie good just because some actor is a hotty.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best romantic comedy i've ever seen
Review: I absolutely loved this movie. Maybe it isn't a masterpiece, but it's cute, fun and entertaining. This genre is just to enjoy, not over analyze. That's what frustrates me with critics. These movies are not meant to be life altering, they are simply there to make you smile and have fun with. And this movie has all that a romantic comedy must have. Mandy and Matthew have such a great chemistry together. If i had to choose one word to define it, it would be ...charming!. By the way, this man has the most beautiful eyes hehe!...so definitely, it's a must-see!


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