Hope Springs

Initial Reaction: Um, can I have my 90 minutes back, please?

If you're a movie fan who enjoys nonsensical characters, sloppy plot, and dull script, this is the movie for you! I actually watched this movie twice, once on my own, and the second time so that my boyfriend and I could tear it to pieces together. In case you haven't figured it out, I did not enjoy this movie. In the past, I have greatly enjoyed Colin Firth's work, but I wonder what potential he saw in this one.
Firth's character, Colin, leaves his home in England after finding out that his long-time fiancee, Vera (Minnie Driver), is getting married to another man. Depressed and feeling hopeLESS, he winds up in Hope, a small town in New England where he rents a room in a motel in order to work on his art while either escaping from or dwelling on his problems. I'm not sure which one.
Before too long, he is thrown into the path of Mandy (Heather Graham), who immediately insists on dragging him along on her ridiculous escapades. While I'm sure we're supposed to get the warm, happy feeling of a man realizing the potential of a love he's never had, we're only given the sudden attraction an ex-fiance-in-mourning has for a cute blond who belongs in a padded room. Seriously, there is no chemistry between the two characters, and the audience is given no reason to believe that Colin and Mandy are "meant to be," as all rom coms at least attempt to do. The characters in Hope are quirky and supposed to be endearing, but they end up just plain annoying. Oliver Platt appears in a weak subplot as an elite member of the tiny town who is crooked and egoistic. In a better movie Platt's fun performance might have been a humorous touch, but in this already downward spiral of a film, it just added more weight.
The acting wasn't bad, but it wasn't very good either. I'd say the character that shines here is Minnie Driver, but in the end, she also is doomed to succumb to the ridiculousness of the script as she for some reason is made the new Queen of Hope.
Now, I'm not above silly or ridiculous movies in general. In fact, some of my favorite types of humor are centered around the far-fetched and nonsensical. But if you're trying to make a fun, silly movie out of a romantic comedy, don't try to make it silly and serious at the same time. And at least give us something, or someone, to believe in. Or something to be interested in. Please, just give us some hope.

-22 to 22 Rating: -10
If I had three wishes, I would wish that 1) I never meet a real person like Mandy, 2) that the director and others behind this film would learn from their experience and maybe change their identity, and 3) that everyone who has ever seen this film (including those that enjoyed it) would henceforth have it erased from their memory. Trust me, you're better off.