Rating: 
Summary: Sweet...!
Review: This may not be a great movie, but it is charming. I haven't seen many movies with Kate Hudson, but I have been surprised how talented she is. I especially liked the "old time" scenes, very well done! My husband and I really enjoyed watching that movie.
Rating:
Summary: Sweet, Romantic, Fun
Review: Yes, this movie is a bit weak when it comes to the plot, but hey, what romantic comedy isn'? I watched it with my wife and she cried - a sure sign that this is a very good movie within it's genre. Best of all, I laughed. The trick with this and other romantic comedies is to refrain from the cynicism that comes so easily to members of our postmodern society and just enjoy it for what it is:A sweet, fun, romantic movie.
Rating: 
Summary: the last act
Review: If you can stay with this film to the Third Act, you'll be rewarded with a sweet love story. The first two thirds, however, are sadly trite. Kate Hudson has been so watered down in appearance and personality - she screams "bland." And Luke Wilson's narrative is toneless and flat. It's very frustrating because I love both of these actors, and it's sad to watch them drown in bad material. But just as I was about to turn away from this formulaic film, I was suprised by the last 20 minutes of it. Suddenly, a beautiful love story emerged, a love triangle that captured my interest and made me feel for these characters. With such a satisfying ending, I was left wondering why the rest of the film hadn't been as well crafted. It's like everything went into the last act of this story, leaving the audience and the actors floundering for far too long. If only the same care for the ending had gone into the beginning and the middle of the piece, it would have been a very satisfying film. It's a pity.
Rating:
Summary: Not the Best, But Certainly Enjoyable
Review: Alex and Emma seems like it would be a great movie, especially because of the appeal that Kate Hudson brings and the charming goofiness of Luke Wilson. While this movie is enjoyable for fans of the romantic comedy genre, it's lukewarm story won't attract anyone who's not expecting the familiar romantic comedy formula (Boy Gets Girl, Boy Loses Girl...) The movie is about a guy named Alex (Wilson) who is a writer struggling to write his second book in thirty days so he can pay off the Cuban mafia for his gambling debt. When they trash his computer, he hires a stenographer named Emma (Hudson) to help him out. The movie has it's moments (I especially enjoyed the one where she drops part of the novel in a puddle and re-writes it herself), but it just doens't have the appeal, wit, or sincerity of other romantic comedies-- like Sleepless in Seattle, or even One Fine Day for that matter. Hudson is the main draw in this movie, and she certainly delivers. She's cute, funny in a not trying to be funny sort of way, and just a great actress, and I'm sorry that this movie wasn't better suited for her talents. Luke Wilson is particulary adorable, though, and I actually felt like I hadn't seen this side of Wilson before in a movie, which I really enjoyed. I didn't like the fact that this movie went between two stories that were practically the same. Alex's book is acted out throughout the movie, and of course his book is a mirror image of what is going on in his real life, except that it's set on a fake island many many years ago. It was unnecessary to have two like stories-- Rob Reiner should've picked one and went with it. I'm a huge fan of romantic comedies, but this one just didn't strike me like others have. However, if you do like romantic movies, by all means see this one.
Rating: 
Summary: One wishes the writer had been blocked when he scripted this
Review: Alex and Emma is not a film to be conceptualized by a rather savvy, hook-ie, Hollywood director. An ego is this type of film's worst nemesis. As a writer, I expected to at least latch onto the portrayal of the creative process in this story. I am also quite an admirer of both Luke Wilson and Kate Hudson. Neither have really had a bad performance in a film I've seen thus far. By minute 6 (I know because I looked at my DVD counter) I was waiting for the next 90 to pass. It was clear this would be Rob Reiner of the worst ilk: a Nora Ephron-esque slide into hokey, predictable, romantic comedy fare without the charms of Meg Ryan, Tom Hanks, or Billy Crystal. I have to believe Reiner is handing us this piece as the long lost best-seller he never quite accomplished. That is the only explanation for the useless exposition, and grating jumps into the most uninteresting make-believe on film of the last 5 years. Nothing is funny. Nothing is touching. He manages to take rather gifted comedians Wilson and Hudson, and grind them to a sallow halt. Not even Hudson's best quirks work in this drivel. Reiner contradicts his own biggest selling point in Wilson's plot. I won't reveal it in case you want to waste an hour and a half on this experiment in agony.
Rating:
Summary: Fluffy comedy, supported almost totally by Kate Hudson
Review: This is a fluffy romantic comedy that is slightly original, though Rob Reiner claims it's based on an incident in the life of Feodor Dostoyevski, right! The gimmick here is the plot where a writing-blocked novelist must come up with a manuscript in 30 days (29 actually) or face extreme prejudice from some Cuban loan sharks. After the loan sharks toast his laptop (literally), the writer has to hire a stenographer to take dictation ("Miss Stein! Take dictation!" Mel Brooks in "Blazing Saddles" comes unbidden to mind) The stenographer, ably played by Kate Hudson, provides ongoing critique of the hapless writer's work ("Ylva? What kind of name is "Ylva"? and the always-worrisome "You've written yourself into a corner!") Naturally life imitates art, and the romance triangle between the author, the stenographer and a mysterious Polina develops. The setting is Boston, though the sets had us so confused that it took us longtime Boston residents a while to figure out that they were indeed in Boston. The film is mildly amusing, and the idea of a novel being acted as it's "written" was occasionally diverting. The characters were scarcely developed, and one wonders, at the end, how an author who gambles away hundreds of thousands and gets in dutch with loan sharks is suddenly going to be able to handle a love relationship and life itself. This isn't ever addressed, but hey, it's a comedy. And nothing more.
Image and Sound: The image was crisp and clear. Maybe a little grainy in some of the mistily-lit scenes in the novel which takes place in the 20's. The surround sound was undistinguished (as was the score.) Mostly front of the Surround Sound.
The Extras:
This is a comedy, and a light one. The commentary may actually be more amusing than the film itself, especially the bit about how they named one of the Cuban thugs . Not many extras on this DVD. No deleted scenes, etc. In summary, this is an amusing romantic comedy, makes a good Valentine's Day gift. You would own this one to see a light amusing comedy and to watch Sophie Marceau and Kate Hudson, well, mainly Kate Hudson, who lifts this from ordinary to ordinary but worth watching. Otherwise forgettable.
Rating:
Summary: So sweet!
Review: Ok, so it's a chick flick! It still has a pretty good plot (even though a little confusing), and you won't fall asleep while watching. As with all GOOD movies, the ending doesn't leave you hanging or wondering "what just happened?".
Rating:
Summary: Good Chick flick
Review: Ok, so I liked it. Yeah, it was an improbable movie, but it was fun and a great movie for a Valentines Evening with the misses. Although I can see how some would get confused with the story line switching back between narrative and novel and the every changing au per may of left some of the audience wondering what in the world was going on, I thought it was a creative way of telling the story. Sure, it was not a great movie, but who cares. For three bucks it gave us a evenings entertainment. Great chick-flick.
Rating:
Summary: Slightly Stretched But Entertaining Plot
Review: Stretched a bit around the Cuban Mafia putting up $100K to finance an author who must deliver a book manuscript within thirty days and a stenographer who answers an ad, then proceed to become part of the storyline and actually turn out to be just like the novel written and transcribed by the duo. In spite of this (what Hollywood flick doesn't stretch reality quite a bit?) this is fun and not insane on violence and sex.
The story jumps back and forth between the dictation of the novel and it actually being acted out. Enjoy the changing of the au per and acting on this is good. Enjoyable.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Great
Review: Ok so they try something different and it didn't work. The idea was ok, but could of been better, two star's for having Luke Wilson and Kate Hudson playing two different characters in this weak plot.Enjoy!!
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