Egad! Here I go again, extolling the virtues of yet another chick-flick gone good. I don’t know exactly why I keep going to this genre of movie (wait, yes I do, my wife suggests them), but I find that I like them more and more.
This past Saturday night, my wife and I were bored and there was nothing on TV. There were a few movies that we wanted to see, but the brand-new films didn’t accept passes (as they normally don’t the first two weeks of a film’s release). So, of the films playing at our local theater, In Her Shoes was the one film that we both agreed would be a good choice.
In Her Shoes starts off with a basic enough premise. Rose (Toni Collette) is a successful lawyer. She lives life very responsibly, paying her bills on time, etc. She doesn’t date much, and has a slow social life. Maggie (Cameron Diaz), her younger sister, is a party girl who can’t seem to grow up. She lives her life irresponsibly – she can’t keep a job more than a few weeks, she engages in casual sex and has no problem stealing from family members who try nothing more than to help her out.
The sisters’ mother passed away when they were quite young – and we find out early on in the movie that their mother committed suicide, and that she had a lifelong history of some sort of mental illness.
When the movie opens, Maggie is living with her father, Michael (Ken Howard) and step-mother, Sydelle (Candice Azzara). Rose gets a call in the middle of the night by some stranger who informs her that Maggie is too drunk to come home. Rose picks her up, takes Maggie back to their father’s house, and Sydelle basically throws Maggie out, stating that this is the last time she’s willing to put up with Maggie’s irresponsible behavior.
Maggie, with no place else to turn, goes home with Rose.
What I’ve not told you is that Rose had a “gentleman caller” spend the night with her that night, so Rose was understandably upset with Maggie that she had to leave under those circumstances.
After a sisterly spat, Rose throws Maggie out and Rose quits her job (you’ll have to see this movie to find out why). Maggie takes a bus down to South Florida in order to rip off her grandmother (Shirley MacClaine) that she never knew but discovered accidentally.
While with her grandmother, Maggie learns about herself, her past, and what talents she has outside of a dance club or bedroom.
The viewer is treated to some insight into Maggie’s and Rose’s lives, especially Maggie’s, and why she isn’t as successful as Rose. We learn about the painful past surrounding their mother’s death and how their father and grandmother each dealt with their pain and shock. We learn about relationships and why it is sometimes necessary to end old feuds and discover the truth behind them. We also learn about prioritizing relationships, especially when Rose is willing to risk her entire future for Maggie’s sake.
I really enjoyed this film – I know, I’ve already stated that once. In Her Shoes is hilarious. There is a lot of clean, decent humor that keeps the movie going at a steady pace and keeps the viewer interested. That’s a good thing, because the movie running time is 130 minutes. There was a lot of laughing from the audience, including the young, twenty-something guy sitting a few seats away who was obviously enjoying the film.
There is a bit of Jewish humor involved in the film, all in good taste, and is something that Jews and non-Jews will both appreciate.
I’m going to go out on a limb here. I will not be surprised to see an Oscar nomination either for Diaz or Collette, if not both. Acting was superb in all aspects of the film and by all the major characters. The genre definitely gets the interest of the Academy.
In a year of very so-so films out of Hollywood, In Her Shoes is nothing less than outstanding. Rated PG-13 for language and some sexual content, this film is one that is worth full-price to see and shouldn’t be missed.
IN HER SHOES: In this screen adaptation of Jennifer Weiner's bestselling novel Toni Collette MURIEL'S WEDDING is Rose Feller an overweight overworked ...More at Family Video
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