Review of film: “I DON’T KNOW HOW SHE DOES IT”

2011, 09-20:

Review of film:  “I DON’T KNOW HOW SHE DOES IT”

             Commentary:  I Don’t Know WHY She Does It!...

This new Sarah Jessica Parker (SJP) film purports to be a “romantic comedy”— except there’s sadly LITTLE real HUMOR inherent in it...

...  Kate Reddy (SARAH JESSICA) works for a  big financial institution in Boston.  Her boss, Clark Cooper (KELSEY GRAMMAR), appreciates that she’s very good at “crunching numbers” & the like...

...  But, while the title (based on something some female friends comment about her) would imply that she’s very efficient in handling matters in life, MOST of what we see is that she’s usually fairly INEPT at day-to-day management of things:

...  At home, she has a husband named Richard (GREG KINNEAR) who’s trying hard to get back to having a job that provides a regular income... 

...  HE often ends up having to take care of their household & KIDS -- 6-year-old Emma (EMILY RAYNE LYLE) & 2-year-old Ben --, since “list-making” Jessica usually FORGETS or is LATE at handling things properly...

...  SJP is typically “unsettled” at WORK.  Since she has an obnoxious co-worker named Chris Bunce (SETH MEYERS) who’s always trying to get HER high-level position, she’s lucky that she has a super-competent assistant, Momo Hahn (OLIVIA MUNN), who keeps things “on-schedule” & running SMOOTHLY...

...  We meet various of SJP’s associates:  open-minded unmarried friend Allison Henderson (CHRISTINA HENDRICKS), & insufferable “hands-off” mothers Janine LoPietro (SARAH SHAHI) & snarky Wendy Best (BUSY PHILLIPS) who usually put SJP’s character “down” in private...

...  Between various scenes of SJP struggling to handle things in her work & home life (“somehow” being “LUCKY” in the way things usually turn-out), we listen to things such as “overly-serious” Olivia talking about how she doesn’t have time for personal RELATIONSHIPS & the like...

...  Kelsey decides to send SJP (& her assistant Olivia) to New York to present an idea she’d developed for a big RETIREMENT-income project.  There, she meets the company’s “big boss”, Jack Abelhammer (PIERCE BROSNAN)... 

...  Pierce quite likes SJP’s proposal, & wants to have it presented to a possible big CLIENT of theirs...  Also, he’s unmarried, &, bit-by-bit, he seems to become increasingly FOND of her...

...  SJP’s idea means she has to keep traveling around the country more & more, making life HARDER for GREG (who’s trying to firm-up getting a new position in his own field of work) & for their KIDS (who are increasingly disappointed at how she’s seldom around & keeps breaking promises to them)...

...  Because this is a (quasi)-comedy, we see some “shocking” news befall OLIVIA (which is never “explained” in any depth, but rather mainly just used to provide an “excuse” for attempted “hilarity” that isn’t really particularly “new” much less funny)...

...  Will SJP be able to “SELL” her grand idea to the major client?...  How will that impact her personal life at home?...

...  Will PIERCE grow increasingly “ATTACHED” to SJP, &, if so, what “ramifications” will that have?... 

...  Will SJP ever be able to get her “act” really “TOGETHER” for the betterment of her family?...

...  What’s my “reaction” to this film?...  I hate to say it, but I’ve grown very “weary” of the way SJP seems to keep playing the SAME TIRED basic character lately... 

...  Here, she’s “DITSY”, she’s “flustered”, she’s “confused”, she’s “unsure”--  & she’s BORING overall!...  That’s why I said at the beginning, “I Don’t Know WHY She Does It!...”  (-- Can’t she find scripts OUT of her stereotypical “comfort” level?!...)

...  The problem lies (to me) in the very WEAK WRITING overall.  There’s almost no real CLEVERNESS to the purported “humor”.  Some of the generic “ideas” covered may make it “popular” as a sort of “CHICK-flick”, but it’s simply not “ENOUGH” to build an effective movie on...

...  In a number of ways, it’s SAD the way the film turned out, in that there’s some quite good work done (“ABOVE” the level of the words on paper) by Greg, Olivia & especially PIERCE (such as in a “bowling” segment) re how they handle the “situational” aspects of their characters...

...  This is not a “horrible” movie (-- certain women in the audience got some laughs from the “doings” in it)...

...  But, it’s unfortunately FAR from being anything really good overall, &, accordingly, I can’t rate it as much more than 6.0 on a scale of 10 stars (& that mainly for the periodic pleasant acting)...

[ NOTE:  You can easily SHARE this Posting with your friends or family by sending them an e-mail LINK via clicking on the “M” button in the lower left-hand corner ... ]

  (o_
   /\ 

= = =    [ 4 B&W  I&D ]   …  ( <>  ^  <> )  ...

                                        * - - - - - - - - - *

                    Facebook:  VOICE OF SILENCE