Rating: Summary: Cute and Funny Review: I can think of a bunch of reasons for not liking this movie. In spite of all those reasons, I like it. It was cutesy and a bit cliche, and yet, it was funny and generally well done. I should mention that Kate Bosworth steals the show. I could not keep from watching her. She has a lot of potential for much more serious roles. She reminds me of Sally Fields when she was a teenager.The story is vaguely familiar. The sweet girl in a rural West Virginia town thinks Tad Hamilton the actor is the greatest person on earth, not realizing that someone close to her is deeply in love with her. When she wins a contest to go to Hollywood to date Tad, she is ecstatic. This story could have ended here, but Tad is taken with Rosalee Futch (Bosworth) and pursues her back to West Virginia. The guy who has been in love with her most of his life, Pete Monash (Topher Grace), does not believe he can compete with Tad, though he does try. While the ending has some predictability, it also has some surprises. One feature that crops up several times in this movie is a certain amount of cynicism and sarcasm. As one example, the scene near the end of the movie between Pete and Rosalee is nearly identical to an earlier Tad Hamilton film. Sometimes the cynicism is equivalent to a baseball bat to the head, and other times it is very subtle. You have to watch the movie a couple of times, and even then I may still have missed much of the cynicism. Another feature of this DVD are the extras. The gag reel is pretty good, but I also liked the deleted scenes as well. There are a lot more extras than what is listed in Amazon, but the deleted scenes and gag reel are the best. A couple are incredibly hilarious. I was told that Paris Hilton is the blond woman in a couple of scenes, but I do not know for sure because I am unfamiliar with her appearance. Good light entertainment with quite a bit of humor, and manages to keep from being overly maudlin. I like it enough that I'll watch it again.
Rating: Summary: frothy and delightful fun Review: This romantic comedy may be predictable, but it's also utterly charming, cleverly written, and wonderfully acted. All the young actors in the cast are terrific, and helped by the good script, are always believable; there are no lame lapses of dialogue that come off as insincere.
Kate Bosworth (seen recently as Sandra Dee in "Beyond the Sea"), is beautiful and sweet as Rosalee, a cashier at the Piggly Wiggly supermarket, who wins a date with movie star Tad Hamilton; Tad's hilarious management team (Nathan Lane as Richard Levy the Driven, and Sean Hayes as Richard Levy the Shameless), in order to rehabilitate their client's shoddy image invent a "charity date" scheme, never thinking that Tad will actually fall for the girl, which he does, creating a love triangle with Piggly Wiggly's store manager, who is madly but secretly in love with Rosalee.
Topher Grace shines as Pete the supermarket manager, as he tries to compete with the smile and abs of movie hunk Tad (perfectly played by Josh Duhamel). His comedic timing is marvelous, and he has a "lovability factor" that reminds me of John Cusack's Lloyd Dobler in that other romantic gem, "Say Anything".
Also good in the cast is the very funny Ginnifer Goodwin as Rosalee's best friend, and Kathryn Hahn as Angelica the Bartender.
The above average script was written by Victor Levin, Robert Luketic did the well paced direction, and it has a pleasant (meaning nothing overtly annoyed me) contemporary soundtrack with songs like Liz Phair's "Why Can't I ?" and John Mayer's "Back to You". There are scenes that have laugh-out-loud humor, and a lovely sappy ending that will bring tears to the eyes of those with sentimental hearts.
Total running time is 95 minutes.
Rating: Summary: Topher Grace Review: This movie was a great "chick flick", but Topher Grace made it very enjoyable for anyone who really looks for good acting as well. In other words, he didn't only pull off the lovesick Lloyd Dobbler-type, but he has great comic timing! He is very interesting to watch, and keeps the movie going at a good pace.
Rating: Summary: Alot Funnier than it Looks! Review: When I first saw this movie advertised I thought it really looked stupid. I saw in on cable and it turned out to be a really hilarious movie. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because it's not what I consider a 'classic, must-have, can't live without, gotta have it in my DVD collection" movie. Topher has wonderful comedic timing and given enough rope, will lasso himself a very large comedy future. He absolutely made the movie. The actress who plays Kate's friend, Ginnifer Goodwin - my husband and I thought her expressions and mannerisms were overwhelmingly subtle yet unmistakably hilarious. It's a feel-good movie you should at least see once and give it a chance to grow on you. I've seen it 5 or six times and still laugh!
Rating: Summary: Good...but not Great Review: I have never seen a movie promoted so much! Every other commercial was about this movie. It was going to be the blockbuster of the summer. Then why did it not even make half of what it cost? Because both guys are too amazing! This movie is hilarious, no question about it, Topher Grace is the next great thing in comedy. But Josh is great too! The problem with this movie is that you don't know who to root for! You want both guys to win and don't want either guy to lose! If only they had made "Tad" a little more dislikable we could have been satisfied at the end. The only thoughts running through my head at the end were..."Aww...how sweet..but wait! What about Tad?! He deserves a happy ending too." So this movie definatly has it's high points, but it's just not that satisfying.
Rating: Summary: Funny the first few times, just okay after that Review: I saw WIN A DATE WITH TAD HAMILTON! in theatres twice - I liked it that much. I also bought it on the first day it came out, and I watch it every so often. Anyway.
WIN A DATE WITH TAD HAMILTON! is a cute story about a small-town girl (Kate Bosworth), who is pretty much in love with actor Tad Hamilton (Josh Duhamel). One day when she's at work at the Piggly Wiggly (with her two best friends Pete - Topher Grace - and Kathy - Ginnifer Goodwin), she sees an ad for this charity thing...and you can win a date with Tad Hamilton.
Obviously Rosalee (Bosworth) enters - and wins - the contest. She flies out to California to meet up with and date Tad, and they end up having a great time. They have such a great time that he actually flies out to Fraser's Bottom to see her. As Rosalee and Tad get more serious, Pete freaks out. The ending's pretty predictable, but its still great.
I'd have to say that the best things about WIN A DATE WITH TAD HAMILTON! are the performances by Topher Grade (he plays Pete) and Sean Hayes (who plays Richard Levy...one of Tad's managers). They both have very good comedic parts, and without them the movie wouldn't be as good. I recommend this if you liked How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days or 10 Things I Hate About You.
Overall grade - B
Rating: Summary: Just another romance movie Review: Tad Hamilton is idolized by a cashier, Rosalee, of a small town grocery store (Kate Bosworth). She ends up winning a contest to be flown to Cali to have dinner with Tad (Josh Duhamel). Her store's manager and good friend Pete (Topher Grace), is in love with her but can't get the guts to tell her.
Rosalee goes to Cali and Tad ends up falling for her. One thing leads to another, and soon Tad goes to her town to get her.
Pretty predictable ending, as with most romance movies, but it's entertaining and Bosworth is fun to watch.
The jewel of this movie is Topher Grace. I have never seen him outside of "That 70s Show" and his acting surprised me.
I recommend this movie for 2nd or 3rd dates, or for married couples to enjoy a good laugh together.
Rating: Summary: The Stars Are For Topher Review: Do most of the characters lack depth? Yes. Is the plot line predictable? Yes. Is the storyline unrealistic? Yes. Do the sincere character portrayals make the movie? YES.
This is not a perfect film by any means, and if anyone besides a very polished, very charming, very next-door-normal Topher Grace were in Pete's role, I would probably pitch it into the abyss with the rest of the abysmally-written box office traps that are chick flicks. To its credit, though, this film uses a cliched plotline to convey some really adorable characters and a few very simple, innocent human truths.
"Win a Date"'s humor has to be perceived in the trivialities of Topher's facial expressions and dialogue; look closely, and it's hysterical. The log-splitting scene has to be one of the funniest and most charming big-strong-he-man-competing-for-the-girl scenes I've watched. Topher is also capable of such depth of expression that the viewer is truly able to trust his character and believe his role, and that, I believe, makes the movie.
Secondly, while this movie is unrealistic, I think the reason it's so enchanted me is that it's what we all wish our love stories could be. While I always sneer at the illicit flings that magically transform into "true love" in other chick flicks, there's something about Pete and Rosalee's long, but undiscovered "romance" that really attracts me. It's not romance in the traditional, mainstream sense--it's more wholesome than that.
And in the end, I think it's the wholesomeness that gets me. No, it's not the way things are. But it's the way things should be.
Rating: Summary: Entertaining, but does Tad Hamilton character really exist? Review: Well, this movie is definitely light, sweet and entertaining. I definitely enjoyed the character Pete played by Topher Grace and Rosalee played by Kate Bosworth.
I do want to question whether the character Tad Hamilton really exist in real life. Tad Hamilton, the "great" Hollywood star, seems like a very self-absorbed, self-centered man who womenize. Tad Hamilton seems like a man that wants to appear as successful and charming to all others just to serve the ego. The personality of Tad Hamilton seems to be just wanting a fling with someone and thinks he can get all he wants from a girl. It just does not seem to me Tad Hamilton cares about how Roselee really feels about him all the way through the movie. This personality reminds me of some of the people I met in the past and is extremely annoying. It just seems surprising to me how Tad Hamilton at the end over the plane would suddenly confess to Rosalee about about the honest truth. Why would a person who womenize, treat women like trophies, all of a sudden become honest? I wish the director can do a bit more explanation over the drastic change of this character. However, I do love the way the movie starts and the way the movie ends with that dance.
I think all the actors and actresses are great in this movie though. But the Tad Hamilton character seems a little odd to me.
Rating: Summary: Charming Date Review: "Win A Date With Tad Hamilton" is one of those movies that had been served up multiple times in the past and yet can still make quite an impressive comeback. We know the taste of this concoction even before we start to sip it. Many, many people have complained of its predictability, and who can deny their allegations? The plot reeks with movie clichés, that even before mid-film, we already know who wins the heart of the girl next door. See if you can figure the answer for yourself: the Hollywood star, or the boy next door?
However, despite its shortcomings, the movie manages to come out quite enjoyable after all, and more than the average fare. No doubt the movie material is an ugly duckling, but I appreciate what Mr. Luketic and the leads did with it. In particular, Mr. Topher Grace's earnest performance as the silently-in-love, jealous and overly-protective "friend" is a joy to watch. And, while Mr. Josh Duhamel's part in the film is to primarily be the handsome Hollywood guy who sweeps the town girl off her feet, he does deliver some of the best lines, making his presence more than just a mere excuse if this were a lesser film. His unHollywood-stereotype performance also makes a nice counterbalance to Mr. Grace's as they vie for Rosalee, the town girl. What further ups the bar is that the movie throbs, it says something to the heart. It tells young people to be steadfast, to be fair, and to admit to their faults.
Now, speaking of raising the standards, Mr. Nathan Lane is just zany, but I think he should have been given more screen zest (as opposed to screen time.) I know he's more than up to it. Here, the movie lost a potential chance to further up the bar.
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