Hope Springs

Rating:
Summary: A CLASSIC ROMANCE
Review: In Brief

When British artist Colin Ware (Firth), discovers that his fiancée Vera (Driver), the love of his life, is going to marry another man he gets on a plane for America and ends up in a tiny town called Hope. Distraught, he soon finds more than a shoulder to cry on when his innkeepers introduce him to Mandy (Graham) a beautiful nurse. But no sooner has Colin forgotten about his old flame than Vera shows up.

Review

Romantic Comedies usually have that mix of candy floss content that makes you think you can eat a whole one, as how hard can it be to eat sugar whipped in air? Yet when you attempt it you realise that while there really isn't anything to it, you cant finish as its sickly sweet and forcing yourself to throw it away you are left feeling very unsatisfied. Now while that analogy may make you cringe you'll be thankful to know that Hope Springs certainly won't. Indeed this is one of those rare hybrid films that feature an Anglo-American crossover romance and succeeds in mixing sass and irony very well so that both sides of the Atlantic may appreciate its story.

Following in the footsteps of Notting Hill and Four Weddings this slice of American apple pie sets the story in the ideally named small town of Hope, where a typically English gent (Firth) has escaped his long-term fiancée to find himself anew. Mandy (Graham) is the tonic everyman desires, and while its beginning to become a familiar story of estranged love finds new passion, both play their roles with a freshness that really lights up the screen.

Steenburgen and Collison are perfect as the comedy cupids that help steer true love on its path. While the local residents of the small town all have a part to play in both hindering and helping the pairing of Mandy & Colin. Indeed, the local mayor played by Oliver Platt is a brilliant encapsulation of the small time business man turned big time thinker, and he brings a slightly toned down but nicely timed comic turn throughout.

Like all romantic comedies the only major downside are their predictability. They all share the same fate, yet its an example of good filmmaking if the story can be remoulded as if to give the impression that its slightly original or at least engaging. Unfortunately Hope Springs is not original, but it does its job well and passes 90 minutes without temptation to make itself something far greater than it should be.

The Verdict

This is the ABC of romance, told with such a sincerity by all members of the cast that you cant help but enjoy it. Colin Firth may have moved on from the wet shirt days of Pride & Prejudice and though he may no longer be Mr. Darcy I don't believe he will disappoint. A delightful pairing with Graham works well, and Hope Springs is enough to give anyone that 90 minute dream we all need sometimes.

Rating:
Summary: Fun, but with gaps
Review: Like many, I was attracted to this movie because of the cast: Colin Firth, Minnie Driver, Mary Steenburgen, Oliver Platt. . .and to some extent, Heather Graham. Considering this stellar cast, I expected quite a bit. It was fun in some areas, but full of gaps elsewhere--maybe those parts weren't that important in this movie, I don't know. About the main characters: I thought Colin Firth handled his role as well as he could. He actually seems like a real person in this movie--emotional, heartbroken, spontaneous, fun--very far from Mr. Darcy of Pride and Prejudice and Mark Darcy of the Bridget Jones series. Minnie Driver plays Vera very well as an authoritative hoity-toity, almost to the point where she may be typecast. My experience of Heather Graham is brief. Her Mandy is rather mysterious in some ways; but to some degree, she brings out the fun in Colin Ware.

Granted, every one of them has done better work elsewhere, and are surely doing better work in future movies. If you need substance, then you might check them out. Yet, if it is enough for you to simply gaze at Colin, Minnie, and/or Heather, then this movie could be slightly more bearable.

Rating:
Summary: Is this some kind of a joke? Romantic Comedy my foot!!
Review: My Gosh! the movie is bad - I mean really bad! The lead female role is someone you would want to run from. All through the film she jumps up and down like five year olds. She reminds me of the heroins of badly written, cheap romantic paperbacks. Ugh! And, what were those innocent - non-innocent clothes shedding?! She is an ideal example of "how to loose a guy in 10 (read one) day". The less said about the second lead - Minnie Driver the better.
Colin Firth - I implore you to choose better next time - you are worth better.

Rating:
Summary: What was that?
Review: Oh dear Lord this is bad. Everyone but Heather Graham is mediocre, and she's terrible. I am fully able to suspend my disbelief in order to enjoy a movie but this train wreck didn't let me. It was ominously awkward from minute one. I'd recommend another film instead but thinking about this one has left me tired. I must lie down.

Rating:
Summary: A Pleasent Movie!
Review: Okay, first off this movie is not going to scream oscar winner but it's still a fun quirky movie with likeable characters. Yes, I'm a huge Colin Firth fan and no that's not why I'm not jumping on the bandwagon of bad reviews. Yes, the movie is a romantic comedy but I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that it's predictable. Perhaps because I've not read the book that this movie was based on I did not come in with any kind of expectations. Who knows. I do recommend this movie as a nice way to spend a few hours.

Rating:
Summary: Hope Springs
Review: Our southern friend in the previous review is not very enlightened! The movie is based on the book "New Cardiff" by the same man that wrote THE GRADUATE (not a bad pedigree) and-SHOCK-the characther's name was ALREADY COLIN!!!! Just a happy coincidence or maybe serendipity (don't worry, Tennessee gal--you can look those words up in the dictionary). This is a delightful movie, very faithful to the book--the best part is that Colin is in virtually every scene! It's a shame that the studio did not release the film to US theaters--it was very well received in the UK. Colin shows his charming comic ability and self-depricating humor. I'm sure he gets tired of looking angry or unhappy in his other films--this gives him a chance to show his wonderful smile! (also, Love Actually is one of the funniest films made and was a runaway hit in the US)

Rating:
Summary: A Date Movie for Grownups
Review: This charming romantic comedy may be too original for some tastes, but if you like subtle comic acting, characters that are quirky but not cliche, a loose British shooting/editing style, and a story with no bad guys or even unsympathetic characters, this gently funny love story makes a fine movie for two on a sofa on a cool evening.

Rating:
Summary: Boring!
Review: This film was incredibly painful to watch. Boring, boring, boring. The storyline was ridiculous and the acting was contrived and terrible. What a waste!

Rating:
Summary: One of the worst movies I've seen with otherwise good actors
Review: This movie seems to be written by a committee, which held too few meetings and got not enough catering. The directing is non-existent. The writing should have been tossed into a corner in the first place. The editing is lame; sudden quick cutting, splicing in scenes which have no introduction. It is bewildering how really good actors could have signed onto this project. The Heather Graham character is miscast -- her accent and bearing are all southern California, not Maine, not to mention her straight blond hair. (Another hackneyed blond! When will they learn? Just seeing long-straight-haired blonds these days where they don't belong is to experience being patronized -- do they think we don't recognize a mind-flattening cliche?) Her 'fun' naked scene with Firth (with her back to the camera) has no chemistry or elan or reason for being there. -- Though her acting ability shows through at times, through no fault of the film-makers', and I almost had 'hope' for the movie when it did show.

No one in this film seems to understand his or her own character.

Firth comes to a small Maine town from England to forget his fiance who had -- inexplicably -- sent him an invitation to her wedding to another man. He is a portrait artist and spends his time (without explanation or preamble) doing portraits of all the town's main characters. There is a mayor whose role is unclear; I cut-and-ran 3/4 of the way through -- the ending would not have saved it and my mind was being too blunted as it was.

It is bewildering that Firth's character would fall into bed with a young woman (brought in by the motel owner as a 'healer') who has taken him to a 'garden' to cheer him up but who fast-downs about a quart of booze when she gets there; we don't know anything about why she would do that; how could someone drink even cold tea that fast? Why doesn't he stop her, or leave her as fast as he can? -- She just changes character on him; he has virtually no reaction. and makes him drive home although we subsequently see no signs of drunkeness on her part, just strange, inexplicable choices. Her behavior is not winsome enough to be called 'quirky' or 'cute'. We don't have a sense of why anybody is doing anything they do. Why does the fiance (Minnie Driver') show up and tell Firth she was only trying to make him take some action when she sent him the (now bogus) wedding invitation? Why is she so completely unlikable, even more than the other characters? Why would the artist even be with her in the first place? Who is this guy? Neither the actor, the director, nor the writer gives us any clue. Why does the Firth character fall into a 'comfortable' relationship with the fast-drinking blond when we haven't even seen it begin?

The motel owner (Mary Steenburgen) is the only person who has some (few) reasonable lines and delivers them well -- indeed I (again) had 'Hopes' for the film when she first came on screen; her Maine accent may be accurate, who knows from here in California, and shows up the Graham accent for what it is: California. Driver's 'British' accent fluctuates between what we think of as English and working class English -- we can't tell from what level of society she comes or what region in England. [This happens all too often in British movies, using Brits to do 'American' accents wrongly (either as Texan or extremely flat; no adjustment for the more flexible body language of Americans -- see the 'American' man in 'My House in Umbria') and in American movies using Americans to botch supposedly English ones. You can compare these poor attempts with the well-trained in 'Billy....' (the boy-ballet dancer movie) and 'Strange Relations', in which accents are firmly in place, making each story believable. In those flicks, also, kid actors are chosen (Billy and the kids in Strange Relations set in Liverpool) from the region from which the story is set and so are fully believable -- there are excellent actors everywhere, apparently, and findable if a casting director will look.]

Colin Firth, in this film, has few good lines, little directing suggestions, and so 'just looks' for too long a time on the screen. His character's recent loss doesn't seem to explain the lack of reaction on his part. A pity to waste such an actor -- he was absolutely great in the HBO production of 'The Importance of Being Earnest', and others, but again, the Brits seem to do movies with more attention and thought a greater percentage of the time (and our American acting Cecily in 'Earnest' (Reese Witherspoon) had a perfectly good British accent which did not stand out and make us say: $#%$#). (The Aussie playing Brenda in 'Six Feet Under' (HBO) works hard on her accent and gets it right.)

It is downright dispiriting to find capable actors lending themselves to such a script, which, as should have been obvious, was no Bridget Jones from the start.

Rating:
Summary: Colin Fan!!
Review: Yes, the movie was rather lame and disjointed, but seeing Colin Firth throughout the whole movie was worth it!! I have been crazy about Colin Firth ever since I saw Pride and Prejudice. Colin's role as Mr. Darcy definitely has more artisitic quality, but, hey, I watched Hope Springs for aesthetic reasons!! If you want to spend an hour and half watching an extremely handsome, witty man -- rent the movie!!