Well, first things first: Usher Raymond is smart to begin in a simple romantic comedy as this, so if he failed, it wouldn't be a big deal since the movie was that small anyway! Emmanuelle Chriqui is sensitive and convincing. Chazz Palminteri is Chazz Palminteri, and that's not a bad thing by the way. It's only Ron Underwood who was disappointing; after promising movies such as (Tremors - 1990), (City Slickers - 1991), and (Heart and Souls - 1993), he became so far from dreams that he gave to me about excellent Hollywood director who doesn't execute inasmuch as feel and create.
However, the movie isn't that bad. It's just ordinary. Watchable but as something between average and weak. The low points come basically from that script. There is no effort that has been done. The girl loves the boy, so the boy doesn't need much to impress the girl. The father loves the boy, so the boy didn't suffer much getting the father's approval. And so on..
Now for the very provocative points: the girl knew one night about the boy's previous girlfriend, or girlfriends, though she throws herself in his arms AND in the same night! The girl goes to the boy's home to find another girl - classically accidentally - with him, so she understands - always and forever - the situation wrong; which's ancient boring stuff, it's unbelievable that anyone still uses it as dull as this! And to sum it all up, let me say: "..and so on with the easiness and the triteness"! There are no fine special details, meaning: the matter of "We've seen all of that before, and better too!". Furthermore, while dealing with gangs and assassinations, why this script lacks the action badly?! I know it's clichéd, but this movie needed a car chase desperately!
But the biggest bugging point about it is its ending. The girl, the boy and all the characters got no problem at all towards the business of the father who's a crime lord, a mafia boss, in a word: another Italian godfather! The moralities weren't missing like this in a harmless romantic comedy like that before. It even gets bigger and bigger when the boy, after joining the Mix, is happy of all the money that he got with his bride out of the invited people's pockets!! So it doesn't totally matter if it's dirty money or not; it's just enough to marry your love, living wealthy and influential, while forgetting about trivial things like stealing and killing. Just get in the mix even if it's filthy or bloody. Sure this could have been Vito Corleone's favorite movie!
It's not The Godfather, where the family is ruled and infected in the same time by crime. It's maybe the next, more cool, generation, where the girl, her lover, so their story's makers too, don't concern much about that! I think this apathetic indifferent ending pushed the viewer, even unconsciously, to turn a cold shoulder to the whole movie.
However, the movie isn't that bad. It's just ordinary. Watchable but as something between average and weak. The low points come basically from that script. There is no effort that has been done. The girl loves the boy, so the boy doesn't need much to impress the girl. The father loves the boy, so the boy didn't suffer much getting the father's approval. And so on..
Now for the very provocative points: the girl knew one night about the boy's previous girlfriend, or girlfriends, though she throws herself in his arms AND in the same night! The girl goes to the boy's home to find another girl - classically accidentally - with him, so she understands - always and forever - the situation wrong; which's ancient boring stuff, it's unbelievable that anyone still uses it as dull as this! And to sum it all up, let me say: "..and so on with the easiness and the triteness"! There are no fine special details, meaning: the matter of "We've seen all of that before, and better too!". Furthermore, while dealing with gangs and assassinations, why this script lacks the action badly?! I know it's clichéd, but this movie needed a car chase desperately!
But the biggest bugging point about it is its ending. The girl, the boy and all the characters got no problem at all towards the business of the father who's a crime lord, a mafia boss, in a word: another Italian godfather! The moralities weren't missing like this in a harmless romantic comedy like that before. It even gets bigger and bigger when the boy, after joining the Mix, is happy of all the money that he got with his bride out of the invited people's pockets!! So it doesn't totally matter if it's dirty money or not; it's just enough to marry your love, living wealthy and influential, while forgetting about trivial things like stealing and killing. Just get in the mix even if it's filthy or bloody. Sure this could have been Vito Corleone's favorite movie!
It's not The Godfather, where the family is ruled and infected in the same time by crime. It's maybe the next, more cool, generation, where the girl, her lover, so their story's makers too, don't concern much about that! I think this apathetic indifferent ending pushed the viewer, even unconsciously, to turn a cold shoulder to the whole movie.