Summary
This truly terrible Hallmark-esque movie stars a wooden Alicia Witt (who I recognise from Cybill) as Wren, a New Yorker working for a PR/Advertising/Events firm run by rich siblings who’ve never had to work a day in their life. She is the real brains behind the business which is currently in financial difficulty and has had to relocate to (shock, horror) Brooklyn. Her college boyfriend shows up as a client wanting to launch his preposterous social/charity website. Turns out her Aunt (who she lived with after her mother died) “persuaded” her to not follow Owen to San Francisco where he’s since become successful because the situation reminded the Aunt of the mother who was disappointed by the father. A “work” trip to the Hamptons where Wren conveniently has to wear a colleagues skimpy clothes ends at the hospital when said colleague breaks a leg while attempting to go night swimming. Owen feels responsible and stays behind, along with his heartbroken CFO friend who ends up with the girl. Confusion ensues when Owen thinks Wren is with a guy her Aunt set her up with while Wren thinks he’s with broken leg girl. They quote the letter from Persuasion to each other (badly – yes, the novel exists in the film) and kiss.
Highlights
- A snarky pregnant lesbian eating everything, her stomach is literally a beach ball (it’s like they didn’t even try) in a stand out performance by Liza Lapira (The Equalizer)
- Bebe Neuwirth (Frasier) who is much too good for this sh*t show as the Aunt who wisely says a woman should not choose a mans career over her own
- Awful attempts to integrate fictional social media into the movie and cliché “young girls in the office”
- Token racial diversity in stock minor characters (sassy black woman, cold Asian woman)
Critique
- The title sucks and is unnecessary
- As above Alicia Witt was wooden and flat, there were a few good performances amongst the side characters
- A good way to waste 90 minutes and some brain cells but don’t expect anything profound
- Some hilarious one liners delivered by the boss (Sir Walter insert) and other bosses wife (Mary Musgrove insert) hidden amongst clunky dialogue
- Awkward fake running and dancing