LeavingIt Blank

Painful. Two words: Hugh Grant. This was SO bad. (Not entirely Grant's fault-- the script was pretty hokey as well.) What made someone think Hugh Grant was a good choice for this? Really, this could have been an enjoyable flick if they'd had someone believable in the role. The problem with Grant trying to play a wiped-up, misogynist knuckle dragger is that he's far too eloquent, deferential, and self-effacing-- obviously well-educated, posh, and, most importantly, lacking the necessary testosterone-driven arrogance. It's been a shtick that's served him well in his earlier "chick flick" romances where he plays the perfect female-fantasy romantic lead. But in roles such as this one, you can't just mouth the lines-- you have to embody the whole personality, the culture, the indoctrination, that creates that degree of ignorance. He basically put as much effort into this film as his character put into teaching, which was nothing. Grant is a one-trick pony. He has an "act" that he's great at and everyone loves him for it, but it doesn't suit every role; this was one of them. "Resting on his laurels" was never more aptly applied, for both Grant and whoever cast him.