Some Kind of Beautiful (2015)

Really no matter how much plastic surgery Bronson has this is a it too much. no wonder it has a 1/10 on Metacritic, despite the obvious large number of shill reviews from its marketing company here

This romantic comedy had lots of promise and failed on so many fronts.The producers were clearly banking on people wanting to see the sexy stars (Pierce Brosnan, Salma Hayek, and Jessica Alba) to sell this movie. It sure would have helped if they had a decent script to go with it.The dialog is silly and trite, the plot lines are very flawed, and the directing is poor. The scriptwriter and director were clearly following the textbook rom-com formula.A good example of the flawed plot and characters is the drama caused Kate finding out that by Richard slept with Olivia. Kate got married and Richard married her and move to America with her to raise their child. SHe rewards this by cheating on him and telling him she has found another. He moves into the pool house and has to watch her with her boyfriend for 2 years. The entire time she treats him poorly and wants him to move on.Then the half sister Olivia visits and Richard developed feelings for her and they sleep together. When Kate finds out she flips out, tells her sister to leave, refuses to go to Richards immigration interview knowing that it would cause him to get deported, separating Richard from their son who clearly loves him, and then refuses all communication with her sister. This is the woman that cheated on her husband and rubbed it in for 2 year. You would have thought she would have been miffed but not to this level of extreme behavior.But the silly plot required this artificial drama to give the main character (Richard) an obstacle to overcome that in doing so would bring everyone back together. Very trite.At least we get to see Jessica in her underwear and Salma's naked butt a few times.

Lessons in Love is a rom com that does not always hit its marks. It is not too romantic, uproariously funny or makes biting comments about academia. I just thought Michael Douglas did this better in Wonder Boys.Richard (Pierce Brosnan) is a literature professor married to the much younger Kate (Jessica Alba) and they have a son together and he has moved to the USA. However Kate is having an affair and Richard hits on her older sister Olivia (Salma Hayek) who herself is in an estranged marriage as she found her husband cheating on her.Richard has had a hell raising life just like his father also a college professor. Now being pursued by the immigration authorities for overstaying his visa, arrested for drunk driving he is trying to spend as much time with his young son and find a spark in his teaching and a permanent job.There are a few good gags but it feels predictable. Malcolm McDowall's northern accent is at odds with Brosnan's Irish brogue. Oscar winner Marlee Matlin is wasted in a small role but Brosnan seems to be enjoying himself in playing the old charming rogue.

One reviewer commented that 'the only thing funny is your own disbelief about how utterly crappy this film was"I also was surprised at my denial because of the smiles between Pierce Brosnan and Selma. You can't put a smile under a microscope and that is why this Some Kind Of Beautiful satire on life is worth watching. The professor reminded me of professors I had while in graduate school : with a special emphasis in depth psychology and the German romantics. A year after the affairs with the younger students, the Professors of depth psychology were let go.I ended up writing my thesis on the clinical application of fairy tales. However after seeing this film would re name it "Eros Without Boundaries"Why is it artists and professors think they can make love to the whole world: younger sisters and students ? Artists who think they can make love to the whole world seem "pretentious" said one reviewer. Or maybe they are like Father Chronos (time) who keep swallowing younger and younger women until they swallow a stone and die.Am not sure what the reviewer meant by pretentious, but the homes and outfits were lavish. That is except for Selma who lost her high heel and the old mustang.This was also true of the graduate school I attended: a Spanish villa monastic retreat with amazing views and its own organic vegetable garden which was prepared by cooks for the weekend retreat.Was it the beauty of the place that hosted incestuous relationships between much older professors and girls old enough to be their daughter? Jack Nicholsonn was born of his sister due to blurred boundaries of his alcoholic father.Incestuous relationships do make for what another reviewer called "plot so interrupted, motivations so compromised and reality so ignored that even the main character played by Pierce failed" However, Isn't that the purpose of filmmaking: to reflect back the satire and collective unconscious of our times? Didn't Clinton have a relationship with a woman old enough to be his daughter?I interpreted this collective unconscious to be : narcissistic self absorption, madness, the lure of love, death romanticism and the drunkards craving for unconsciousness: not being accountable for actions.Looking forward to seeing 007 get some better scripts.