How to Make Love to a Woman
2.5/4
Starring: Josh Meyers, Krysten Ritter, Eugene Byrd, Lindsay Richards, Ian Somerhalder
Rated R for Strong Sexual Content including Graphic Dialogue, and for Language
There is a sense that "How to Make Love to a Woman" should be a lot funnier than it actually is. Whenever the film goes for laughs, it's not nearly as uproarious as it wants to be. At best, it manages to get a chuckle. It is, however, surprisingly sweet.
Andy Connors (Meyers, brother of SNL star Seth Meyers) is a talent agent living in Los Angeles. He's dating a raven-haired beauty named Lauren (Ritter), but there's a problem. He's not good in bed. He's done after six seconds, which leaves Lauren unsatisfied. Fearing a break-up, he decides to go with his friend Layne (Byrd) to ask people how to be better in bed. Meanwhile, Lauren has a job opportunity to die for in Chicago, and her boss (Ken Jeong) is hoping that an old neighbor named Daniel (Somerhalder) will convince her to take it.
This could be a great romantic comedy, but it's not all that funny. The jokes aren't bawdy or insightful enough. It has the same problem as "Think Like a Man;" it presents its ideas about men, women and relationships as unique when they're really common place. Oddly enough, the film's closest cousin is Stanley Kubrick's final film, "Eyes Wide Shut." Both are about the search for sexual/emotional fulfillment, but Kubrick's film is much more intelligent and a lot better made.
The acting is okay, which is nice considering that it appears that each scene was only done in one or two takes. Josh Meyers is a pretty likable average guy, even if he's a little too low-key. Krysten Ritter, one of the funniest women working in Hollywood, is also very good. Much of why the ending works is because of her. Eugene Byrd and Lindsay Richards (as a singer that Andy is trying to promote) are typical of any halfway decent direct-to-DVD fare: effective within the context of the movie, but I'm not expecting them to become big stars anytime soon. Ian Somerhalder is good in his small role as Daniel, who isn't the romantic rival that Andy thinks that he is. Still, he's really good. After one scene I was hoping Lauren would end up with him. Less impressive is Ken Jeong. Jeong has proved in movies like "The Hangover" series and "Role Models" that he can be absolutely hilarious. Here, he's kept so low-key that he's boring. Actually, he's pretty annoying.
Putting it bluntly, the film looks like shit. Scott Culver, who made his directorial debut here, isn't going to become the next Stanley Kubrick. The shot selection is depressingly stale, and it feels like it was rushed through production.
Evidently, Culver wanted this to be a traditional romantic comedy rather than a raunchfest. That would be okay if it was more insightful and better made. As it is, it's best enjoyed late at night on TV.
Starring: Josh Meyers, Krysten Ritter, Eugene Byrd, Lindsay Richards, Ian Somerhalder
Rated R for Strong Sexual Content including Graphic Dialogue, and for Language
There is a sense that "How to Make Love to a Woman" should be a lot funnier than it actually is. Whenever the film goes for laughs, it's not nearly as uproarious as it wants to be. At best, it manages to get a chuckle. It is, however, surprisingly sweet.
Andy Connors (Meyers, brother of SNL star Seth Meyers) is a talent agent living in Los Angeles. He's dating a raven-haired beauty named Lauren (Ritter), but there's a problem. He's not good in bed. He's done after six seconds, which leaves Lauren unsatisfied. Fearing a break-up, he decides to go with his friend Layne (Byrd) to ask people how to be better in bed. Meanwhile, Lauren has a job opportunity to die for in Chicago, and her boss (Ken Jeong) is hoping that an old neighbor named Daniel (Somerhalder) will convince her to take it.
This could be a great romantic comedy, but it's not all that funny. The jokes aren't bawdy or insightful enough. It has the same problem as "Think Like a Man;" it presents its ideas about men, women and relationships as unique when they're really common place. Oddly enough, the film's closest cousin is Stanley Kubrick's final film, "Eyes Wide Shut." Both are about the search for sexual/emotional fulfillment, but Kubrick's film is much more intelligent and a lot better made.
The acting is okay, which is nice considering that it appears that each scene was only done in one or two takes. Josh Meyers is a pretty likable average guy, even if he's a little too low-key. Krysten Ritter, one of the funniest women working in Hollywood, is also very good. Much of why the ending works is because of her. Eugene Byrd and Lindsay Richards (as a singer that Andy is trying to promote) are typical of any halfway decent direct-to-DVD fare: effective within the context of the movie, but I'm not expecting them to become big stars anytime soon. Ian Somerhalder is good in his small role as Daniel, who isn't the romantic rival that Andy thinks that he is. Still, he's really good. After one scene I was hoping Lauren would end up with him. Less impressive is Ken Jeong. Jeong has proved in movies like "The Hangover" series and "Role Models" that he can be absolutely hilarious. Here, he's kept so low-key that he's boring. Actually, he's pretty annoying.
Putting it bluntly, the film looks like shit. Scott Culver, who made his directorial debut here, isn't going to become the next Stanley Kubrick. The shot selection is depressingly stale, and it feels like it was rushed through production.
Evidently, Culver wanted this to be a traditional romantic comedy rather than a raunchfest. That would be okay if it was more insightful and better made. As it is, it's best enjoyed late at night on TV.
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