Rating: 
Summary: A feel good movie
Review: I was skeptical about seeing this movie, because it seemed the studio was ashamed of it, never lauching it into wide release. In fact, the video came out just before the nationwide release this year. I only went to see it because Rachael Leigh Cook was in it. I was pleasantly surprised, however, by the good natured humor, the strong acting performances, and the altogether fun plotline. Even if you don't know anything about professional hair styling, you gain an appreciation for the vocation. The movie is kind of a satire of hair styling competitions, but apparently (read the confessions of a former competitive hair stylist who served as consultant to the movie, on the official web site) much of the cheating and over the top hairdos portray the real thing pretty accurately. Yeah, the critics were harsh on this movie by being too cerebral about it. If you just want to let loose and relax and not think but just enjoy the ride, you'll find yourself chuckling uncontrollably during much of the movie and cheering on your favorite stylists during the on-screen competition.
Rating: 
Summary: Combs right over too many comedic opportunities.
Review: If your expecting an outrageously campy comedy ala' Priscilla, Queen of the Desert or a film like Strictly Ballroom. . . you'll be very disappointed by this one. Although it's written by the writer of The Full Monty, it's a film that misses more opportunities to be funny than it hits. The fact that a lot of that is intentional is not necessarily a good thing at all. It's also the third film of the late 2000/2001 season that's about hair dressers or wigs ( An Everlasting Piece, The Big Tease ).As the film introduces us to its characters we quickly learn than one of them is dying from cancer. This immediately tells us the film is probably not going to be one full of outrageous and John Waters' like camp comedy (Hairspray, Polyester, Pink Flamingos), but rather be more of a bittersweet, heart-warming romantic comedy of a film that has a pretty interesting gimmick --the hair dressing competition. It doesn't seem to be quite sure what it wants to be as it gives us a main character dying of a disease, a Romeo and Juliet type romance, and a low key Rocky kind of film all delivered with a package that should have been over-the-top campy but isn't. The most famous and respected hairstylists from around the world descend upon the tiny Yorkshire village for the annual hairdressing Championships. We meet former resident Bill(Nighy), a cheating egotist who has brought his estranged daughter Christina (Cook) with him to possibly use as his colorist. Bill also learns his ex chief rival Phil (Rickman) is in town and he can hardly wait to gloat over how much more successful and famous he's become. Phil is divorced and has traded in his gold show scissors to run his modest local barber shop with his son, Brian (Hartnett) while not speaking to his ex-wife Shelley (Richardson) who's in a lesbian relationship with his former hair model Rachel (Griffiths). Shelley and Rachel run a full service salon across town. If this isn't sounding too funny to you.. you're right. It isn't. It isn't supposed to be either. But while these aren't the typical characters we've seen in domestic dramas, we've seen the circumstances for this type of drama too many times to be moved or all that interested in any of it. Good thing we're watching charismatic performances. It is also no big surprise that these characters will eventually be involved with each other again and be competing in the hair dressing contest--exactly as you expect. It's probably not a good sign when what should be a quirky out of the ordinary comedy begins with too heavy a helping of pathos and then becomes and remains extremely predictable from start to finish. Most viewers will be way ahead of the film, and there's not real surprises being offered except perhaps that is not nearly as outrageous or campy as you might be expecting it to be. I won't tell you too much more than that about the film because there aren't all that many surprises or laughs in the film and if you are going to enjoy it all you don't need me ruining some of the film's modest surprises. There are several recognizable faced in the film's cast and they are all quite good in their roles. Alan Rickman however is almost too low key for the majority of the film and that's another missed opportunity because he would have been more fun if his role had been written to allow him to play his part a bit more broadly. Let's review: Blow Dry is all wet. It combs over comedic opportunities in favor of immersing itself in a run through of tangled subplots which dulls much of the potential luster and glow the film's gimmick and performances might have had. In short, it's a pleasant but very modest film that offers absolutely nothing to get the least bit excited about except as an opportunity to see an impressive cast. The DVD looks pretty good over all visually and audio wise the main complaint is that some of the fun music cues are mixed too low. The only notable extra is a brief 7 minute behind the scene featurette which is both promotional and informative. It covers the bases in the expected manner and includes brief comments from one of the producers Sydney Pollack. If you watch Blow Dry without expectations and don't want to think too much, it's an enjoyable film with some decent performances, several overly familiar story lines and a nice gimmick (the hair dressing competition). The film's tone is bittersweet as well as comedic and it misses several opportunities for humor making it a light, warmhearted forgettable little truffle of a film. The DVD is pretty bare bones but for those interested in the cast it might be worth a rental. Christopher J. Jarmick is the co-author (WITH Serena F. Holder) of the criticaly praised suspense thriller THE GLASS COCOON.
Rating:
Summary: Josh Hartnett-brilliant and beautiful
Review: Josh Hartnett makes you fall in love. Amazing and Splendid prformance...
Rating:
Summary: Josh Hartnett's Accent Was the Best Part...
Review: Movies have a way of making you care what they're about. With the right atmosphere, characters and background music directors can successfully make an audience care about anything they want. If someone wanted to make a drama about a hamster, and they did it well enough, they could probably make a handful of people cry over the tests and toils of their poor little hamster. However, Paddy Breathnach's 'Blow Dry' is a good example of what not to do when attempting to make an audience care about something that they normally wouldn't. The whole movie is about hair. The idea is to make people watching care which obsessive-compulsive barber wins an English hairdressing tournament. The whole thing it just weird. 'Blow Dry' (2000) stars Natasha Richardson as Shelley, a middle-aged hairdresser with a lesbian lover, a lot of really tight clothes, and incurable cancer. She hasn't spoken to her ex-husband Phil Allen (Alan Rickman) for ten years, her son, Brian (Josh Hartnett), is embarrassed to be seen with her, and to make matters worse they all live in the same, tiny village in England. Ultimately, 'Blow Dry' is about the regrouping of an exceptionally dysfunctional family. The whole competition aspect works as a catalyst that forces them to face both the past and the future. The acting is basically decent. Richardson, Rickman, and Rachel Griffiths are all well suited for their roles and for Hartnett, this movie was the first step away from 'heart throb' towards serious actor, but his efforts are overshadowed by the presence of Rachel Leigh Cook. Cook plays the American daughter of the Allen's biggest rival. Her character, Christina, crams into the plot with a horrifying lack of grace that makes it seem like someone went back and added her into all the scenes after the rest of the script was finished. The only possible excuse for Cook's blunder of an acting job is the randomness of her role. 'Blow Dry' wasn't quite there as far as I'm concerned. The storyline steps into a strange territory that leaves the audience wondering if they just watched a comedy or a drama, and feeling particularly unsatisfied with the outcome. I liked parts of it, but as a whole it did nothing for me.
Rating: 
Summary: Alan Rickman is great!
Review: My favorite actor is Alan Rickman and I often see his movies, so that' why I chose this movie. He plays a hairdresser, Phil, who had won the British national hairdressing championships twice in a row. However, Phil missed winning the third time because his wife Shelley (Natasha Richardson) ran off with her lover Sandra (Rachel Griffiths), who is their hairdressing model, so he retired from the front line. In this movie, his performance is excellent! The image of him raising his scissors is very cool!! The writer (Simon Beaufoy) wrote the movie "The Full Monty", too. Both films have "bonds" as their themes. I have never seen his other works, but I think that he is skilful at describing bonds, and I like his works. Their family bond, which was patched up through the hairdressing championships moved me. Moreover, I was very impressed with the scene in which Phil talks with Sandra in bathtub on the top of a hill. There are some funny scenes. In particular, the West Yorkshire mayor is the funniest! Sometimes he made me laugh, but the championship was not so exciting. Also, all hairdressers' works are gaudy. In this movie, Rachel Griffiths is so attractive that she's become one of my favoriteĀ@actresses, and I want to see her in other movies. After seeing "Blow Dry", you will surely want to go to a hair salon!
Rating:
Summary: A pleasant surprise
Review: Normally, this type of film wouldn't appeal to me, but because Alan Rickman is in it, there'd be no question that I'd watch it. Rickman sometimes does the weirdest films, and though he's exceptional in them, the film itself bombs. And though this film wasn't out in theaters for very long, I didn't find it to be a bomb at all. The main plot is very entertaining and well put together, and the subplot, though depressing, brings happy tears to your eyes by the end. I thought the whole film was well balanced and fun to watch over and over again, even if you're not a Rickman fan!
Rating:
Summary: Making the Cut
Review: The plot is a predictable luckily the actors along with the make up and costume department make up for it. This movie shows various hair styles and costumes through it helping to keep the viewer's attention. The British Hairdressing Championship is set to take place in a town called, Keighley. Among its residence is Phil Allen (Alan Rickman) who competed for 10 years before losing it all. Now he is a barbar with his son Brian (Josh Hartnell) and his ex-wife Shelley, whom he hasn't spoke to in 10 years, and her lesbian lover Sandra (played by Natasha Richardson and Rachel Griffiths) work only a few buildings down. Allen refuses to enter the championship despite his ex-wife's request and his son's interest. Its only when Shelley reveals a secret to her ex-husband and son does Allen and the other characters start to understand a lesson in love, revenge, forgiveness, and family.
Rating:
Summary: lots of laughs
Review: this film is totally hilarious. if you like English comedies, something slightly out of the normal and great ideas, it's a must-see! heidi klum is nearly not recognizable, alan rickman and natasha richardson are at their best. and the scene in the morgue with the hair dye kept me laughing out for ages. still, at some points slightly sad, but overall a great film for an evening in.
Rating:
Summary: A Real Pleaser
Review: This is a feel good movie from beginning to end. It's made with equal parts of melodrama, camp and comedy and has a great, finger- popping sound track. It's a spoof of all competitions and competitors that take themselves too seriously, while at the same time celebrating love and eccentricity. It left me smiling and wanting more.
Rating: 
Summary: EXCELLENT CAST BUT SOMEWHAT TEPID MOVIE...
Review: This is a movie about a family divided, who are brought together at a crossroad in their lives by a hairdressing championship being held in their small town. The family, comprised of Alan Rickman and his grown son, played by Joshua Harnett, run the town barber shop and are estranged from their former wife and mother, played by Natasha Richardson. The estrangement came about ten years previously, when she ran off with their hairdressing model, played by Rachel Griffiths, a woman with whom she still maintains a loving, romantic relationship and openly lives with as a couple. Rickman, feeling that he had not only been betrayed but made a laughingstock, has not forgiven her. Unbeknownst to them all, Natasha is going to die, as she has lost the war with the cancer that she has been battling. When she discovers that the big hairdressing competition is coming to their town, she hopes for a last bit of glory and familial reconciliation. You see, when she ran off with Rachel Griffiths ten years prior, she did so on the eve of the hairdressing competition that they were all favored to win. Obviously, her actions squelched that prospect at the time. She hopes to make things right, now that the end is near. She finally persuades them with much difficulty to enter the competition, where Rickman encounters his old nemesis. Then, the bag of tricks begin to fly, all of which were done much better in the movie "The Big Tease". The movie has a little difficulty deciding whether to play it for laughs or for pathos. Ultimately, pathos wins, but not without the movie having suffered from some indecision on this front. Still, Rickman, Richardson, and Griffiths are wonderful, as always, and the movie does have its worthwhile moments. It is a moderately enjoyable, though predictable, film of a family finally brought together in time of crisis. If it is a hairdressing competition film that you want, view "The Big Tease" instead.
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