Rating: 
Summary: Fluffy and Disposable
Review: Last fall, the Coen Brothers had an unexpected bomb with "Intolerable Cruelty." It seemed perfect - a zany comedy pairing George Clooney and Catherine Zeta-Jones as two enemies who fall in love - but audiences didn't respond, thus the quick release to the home market. I thought this was a delightful film. Much of the fun comes from the fact that it's a very, very silly story, and much of the humor comes from the cast embracing how silly it is. George Clooney, in particular, makes a great modern-day Cary Grant, dropping pithy comebacks while flashing a grin. It's brain candy, sure, but the very best kind. The picture quality reflects the colorful, bright nature of the film; unfortunately, the DVD extras aren't so peppy. There are two short, typical featurettes, cast biographies, and outtakes. The Clooney and Zeta-Jones outtakes are quite funny, but two minutes of silent railroad footage are not. Overall, I'm not sure this is really worth your purchase. It's much more viable as a single, fun viewing on a rainy evening.
Rating:
Summary: Low point for the high flying Coen brothers
Review: The remarkable Coen brothers, Joel and Ethan, give us one of their weakest entries in "Intolerable Cruelty". I don't blame them. It is the nature of filmmaking. Sometimes the magic works, sometimes it doesn't. This one has its share of entertaining moments, but it's a mere blip on the radar screen compared to other Coen films such as "Fargo". This is the story of high-profile divorce lawyer Miles Massey [George Clooney], author of a famous prenuptial agreement document so strong no one has ever been able to break it. He takes on Marilyn Rexroth [Catherine Zeta-Jones], who is divorcing her husband on the grounds of infidelity. She has the video tapes to prove it, but, unbelievably, Massey wins the case in court for the unfaithful husband. Marilyn is left with nothing, but Massey hasn't seen the last of her. She plots her revenge, which begins by making him fall in love with her. The problem is that "Intolerable Cruelty" doesn't involve the audience. Both Massey and Rexroth are unlikable characters, so why should we much care what they do or what happens to them? If the movie is a black comedy, where is the comeuppance the couple deserves? If it is a screwball comedy, where are the redeeming qualities of the characters? If it is a satire, then what are the targets?
Rating: 
Summary: So So
Review: There were a few laugh out loud moments, especially with Billy Bob Thornton, but this is an ultimately forgettable movie. Clooney and Jones never realy click, although she is nice to look at. I expect better from the Coen Brothers. Well, maybe next time. This is worth a rental if you want something light and sappy, but I would not advise buying it.
Rating:
Summary: Captain Spaulding Goes to Court
Review: Intolerable Cruelty, the latest Joel and Ethan Coen movie, starring George Clooney and Catherine Zeta-Jones, is more like the Coens' 1994 The Hudsucker Proxy than any of their other films. Hudsucker was a parody (or pastiche, if you like the genre to begin with) of forties romantic comedies. Jennifer Jason Leigh nailed the Katherine Hepburn fast-talking New England sophisticate. I laughed at Jason Leigh's performance more than I ever did at a Katherine Hepburn movie. Intolerable Cruelty is set in the present day, but its comedy evokes the Marx brothers of the thirties. The minor characters are the rich morons (botoxed divorcee, loopy millionaire train enthusiast) that predated Preston Sturges-style pseudo-realism. Imagine an anorexic Margaret Dumont. And I would bet money the Coens were trying to make one character (a poodle-carrying European hotel major domo) look like Oscar Levant. The look of the film (and most of the acting) has a kind of sixties Batman winking at the audience style. The senior partner in Miles Massey's law firm is a monster with tubes and wires connecting him to the world. Clooney as Miles strikes poses and jokes even when he's the only person around. Sometimes it's very funny, but Zeta-Jones plays Marylin Rexroth more straight and that might be why it seems to some that Clooney and Zeta-Jones don't click. My favorite scenes are when Miles fences with his legal opponents in conferences and in court. I can hear Groucho's voice twisting people in knots. Intolerable Cruelty is entertaining, but Joel and Ethan Coen have set the bar so high for themselves with Blood Simple, Fargo, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, and The Man Who Wasn't There that I can't help feeling it was barely worth all the trouble.
Rating:
Summary: Tolerable Mediocrity
Review: One can't be faulted for starting off on "Intolerable Cruelty" with high expectations -- a Coen Brothers comedy with beautiful actors in the lead roles, dealing with divorce lawyers and pre-nuptial agreements among the super-rich in Los Angeles. And certainly the film has its Coen quota of bizarre moments, ludicrous situations, inane but pacy dialogue. You just may find yourself chuckling often, not the audible kind of chuckles, but the generic BubblyMood variety. Sadly, a horrendously predictable plot underpins the theme -- a gold digger (Zeta Jones) rubs an LA divorce lawyer (Clooney) the wrong way, chemistry fireworks follow, etc etc, until the finale where both realize they were in.....heck, I won't spoil it for you. You'll figure it out if you haven't already. There is something vaguely disappointing about it all -- a sense that the filmmaking team was resting on their laurels, not following up on the truly inspired creativity that produced such minor miracles as "Fargo" and "Raising Arizona." And when I go to a Coen Brothers film, I expect something original, bold and inspired. What this flick is though is a very passable, forgettable fare. And that's being kind because it was the Coens..
Rating: 
Summary: witty and funny
Review: this movie combines romantic comedy and screwball comedy and it really works will. so what if the opening scene is the best scene. the whole movie is fun.
Rating:
Summary: 3 1/2 stars for Cohens' venture into romantic comedy
Review: The title of the Cohen brothers' latest film Intolerable Cruelty could have been applied to the duo's film "Barton Fink". Here the brothers attempt a romantic comedy with dashes of screwball thrown in for good measure. Although "Intolerable Cruelty" can't quite stand with the best work the Cohens have done, it's a bright and breezy step away from the really dark humor that has characterized their best work. As usual, though, the duo are still original enough to subvert a number of the genre's cliches. The bottom line, it's entertaining as heck and a pleasant way to spend the evening. Miles Massey (George Clooney) a seasoned divorce lawyer has finally met his match in the love 'em and leaves 'em Marilyn Rexroth (Catherine Zeta Jones). Massey represents Mr. Rexroth (Edward Herrmann) in the divorce . Despite the fact that they are on opposite sides of the fence, Massey and Mrs. Rexroth find an instant attraction and share a cynical outlook on romance and the institution of marriage. We get to watch the two dance around each other expecting betrayal but, in the process, they discover they really were made for each other. Featured witty dialogue, the Cohens' brand of off-beat humor and a number of interesting (Bruce Campbell, Billy Bob Thornton, Geoffrey Rush and Julia Duffy), Intolerable Cruelty at times recalls the best work of Preston Sturges and even Alfred Hitchcock's romantic comedy/suspense films. Although it isn't quite up to Sturges, Hitchcock or Lubitsch, it's a huge improvement over the bulk of the formulaic romantic comedies that Hollywood has been force feeding us over the past decade. Both the lead actors recall romantic comedy stars from the past with their spectacular performances. In the case of Clooney, he reminds me a bit of Cary Grant's breezy performances and Zeta-Jones recalls Grace Kelley's work in Hitchcock's "To Catch a Thief". The supporting cast is equally strong and up to the task of trying to revive a genre that has fallen into cliches. "Intolerable Cruelty" demonstrates that the Cohen brothers continue to master a wide variety of genres bending each to their artistic vision. While this breezy romantic comedy doesn't rank with their best work, the witty dialogue and inspired performances make the film a worthwhile investment on a Friday or Saturday night.
Rating:
Summary: Lots of beauty, absolutely no chemistry
Review: What a disappointment this was. I thought, with the Cohens, Clooney and Zeta-Jones, how could this go wrong? But it does go very, very wrong. Seems like this film was rushed and patched together. I love screwball comedy and fantasy fable, but this is a pale attempt at either, for some reason. Seems like a film that started with great intentions and the best in the business, but just falls so flat. What happened? Clooney and Jones have no chemistry at all. None. No spark, nothing. She underplays the role to the point of being bland, like she'd rather be anyplace else than on the set of this film. He seems to be trying too hard to pull this all together. For some reason, this just never does jell. Can't decide if it's the script, the acting, the production - don't know. Too bad, could have been spectacular if it had worked.
Rating: 
Summary: one of the worst movies i have ever seen
Review: i love george clooney and catherine zeta-jones, but they really embarassed themselves with this film. i was bored to tears and kept looking at my watch praying for it to end. incredibly corny and predictable, and only a few lines made me smile. a very good cast wasted on such a bad film. do not waste your money.
Rating: 
Summary: George Clooney is fascinated by Catharine Zeta-Jones
Review: It is important to remember that "Intolerable Cruelty" is a fable, which is the best way of explaining why tearing up a marital pre-nup actually works, whether or not you eat it with barbecue sauce. This is a world where the only facts that can come out in court are those we do not know; everything else apparently gets forgotten, especially when it would be of some importance in a divorce case. But this is the world of the Cohen Brothers and we learned a long time ago what that means. The story of this 2003 film is that divorce lawyer Miles Massey (George Clooney) is "fascinated" by Marylin Rexroth (Catherine Zeta-Jones). But even being fascinated does not stop him from blowing her out of the water when she tries to divorce her husband Rex Rexroth (Edward Herrmann), nor does going back to the beginning stop her from her plan to marry and divorce a millionaire. We know that he is good, because Marylin had a video showing Rex cheating on her and it did not do her any good, so the question is why she wants to hire him to draft the famous ironclad Massey Pre-Nup for her next marriage to Texas oil billionaire Howard D. Doyle (Billy Bob Thornton). Why would a gold-digger like Marylin want a pre-nup? Stay tuned. One thing you cannot accuse the Cohens of doing is repeating themselves when they make a comedy. "Intolerable Cruelty" is not like "Raising Arizona," "Fargo," or "O Brother, Where Art Thou?", each of which is funny in its own peculiar way. It is, in its own weird way, their version of a screwball comedy, except with a lot more bite than you usually get in such films. The supporting cast has nice performances from Geoffrey Rush, Richard Jenkins, Julia Duffy, Jonathan Hadary, and Cedric the Entertainer, but in the end this film comes down to Clooney and Zeta-Jones, both of whom are actually required to do more than stand there and look good, although she has several scenes that require her to do just that while his eyes widen appreciatively. Surprisingly these two actually have something in common: they are not sure they still want to be the people they have become and might actually do something about it. But then, as I said at the start, this movie is a fable.
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