Hey folks, Harry here - the trailer for PENELOPE has me interested to see the film, mainly because... I heart Ricci - but at the same time, it looks like PORCO ROSSO minus the imagination, heart and passion that that film has. Tonight I had to choose between this and SEMI PRO - and it looks like... I choose correct... cuz SEMI PRO was a foul funny film. Here's The Beef...

Hey guys,

I got a sneak peek at PENELOPE as part of the AFS sneak screening this evening at the Drafthouse, and since I figured there's at least 5% of the AICN reader base that have girlfriends that enjoy these type of films then I thought I'd give them an idea of what to expect. After all, this does have Nick Frost in the cast to give them something to look forward to. So, what does this movie, which has an unusual amount of talent than I would've expected on screen, offer the typical AICN reader that'll be coaxed into seeing it by their significant other two weeks post-Valentine's Day by promising post-film sex? A tad more than nada, so I hope the sex is worth it.

Christina Ricci is Penelope. Penelope is the first female-born Wilhern. The Wilhern's are wealthy. The Wilhern's have an ancient curse running through their genes. The curse is bestowed upon the first female-born Wilhern from the day the curse was placed on the family by a witch whose impoverished daughter was wronged by a Wilhern man. The curse is a pig snout given to the first female-born Wilhern. If you recall, that's Penelope. In order to rid Penelope of her pig nose she must find a blue blood (aristocrat) that is willing to marry her. James McAvoy is the potential knight in shining armour of the fairy-tale that may hold the key to Penelope's heart and normal nose.

It's essentially the Princess Fiona story live-action in the modern day, minus the male ogre, but maintaining just about the same level of cast talent. It stars Ricci and McAvoy in the primary roles, along with Catherine O'Hara as Penelope's mother, Richard E. Grant as Penelope's father, Peter Dinklage as a semi-conscientious paparazzi, and Reese Witherspoon as a friend of Penelope that doesn't come on screen until about an hour into the film and has about 15 minutes of screen time. And, again, there's Nick Frost who's basically there so the Edgar Wright fans can say "hey, that was Nick Frost," and then hope that he shows up again to do something funny. He does show up again. He doesn't do anything funny. Catherine O'Hara is there to do funny stuff, but the stuff she's given to do isn't all that funny. She has her moments, and God knows she tries but there just aren't nearly as many good jokes as there are average ones.

There are honestly only two good things in this film. James McAvoy, and Peter Dinklage. Dinklage isn't given enough screen time either, but he's one of only two people in the cast that seem to operate like an actual human being, which is ironic as all hell since he plays a paparazzi photographer. The only other human being here is McAvoy, who is the only real reason to sit through the entire thing. I don't recall the last time I remember seeing a leading man give this much personality into a rom-com-rama-sy, or even just a rom-com to broaden the spectrum. There isn't anything particularly fantastic or new about the way the character is written, it's all James McAvoy's delivery that makes the character worthwhile. The guy is just likable if not lovable, and genuinely charming. Again, it's very little what he says, it's just the way that McAvoy says what's written, and does what isn't. The female crowd will fall in love with him, and the male members of the audience won't be able to do anything about it because they'll be spellbound too, and they'll be less likely to mind because he's not the typical fantasy man. He's just a guy with a certain quality that makes you warm up to him.

It's also worth noting Ricci since she is playing the title character, but there isn't much to point out. She does earn the audience's sympathy, and she also has very good chemistry with McAvoy, but she is nonetheless outshined. People will walk out remembering McAvoy, but they're not going to remember much of Christina Ricci.

As for Witherspoon and Nick Frost I can only assume they owed someone a favor. Either that, or this film was actually shot years ago and is just now ready to see the light of day. Witherspoon has lines and adequate screen time, but she has a thankless role that ANYONE could have played, and that goes quadruple for Nick Frost who has about one-fifth the time of Witherspoon and less-than nothing to do or say.

There are certainly worse things that you could be dragged to, and you'll get a chuckle or two and your heart may warm a degree or so. But when the best part of a romantic-comedy for both audience genders is the leading man and not the lead actor for the females and an attractive woman and token wing man for laughs for the men, like it's supposed to be, then it breaks conformity to a fault. The attractive woman and funny wing man are a necessity for the male audience, so when you give your lead actress a pig face and don't write in a male sidekick then you've severely polarized your audience.

Essentially, make sure you've agreed upon the sex beforehand guys, because you'll want to get more out of this deal than just James McAvoy. He's good, but nobody is THAT good.

Thanks,

THE BEEF