By EWAN McDONALD
(Herald rating: * * * )
Two reasons why this is an unusual Mel Gibson movie:
1 Although he's frequently voted the World's Sexiest Man, this is his first romantic comedy since Bird On A Wire in 1990;
2 In a role that requires him to dress up, dress
down and even crossdress, you won't see his backside once.
Gibson stars as Nick Marshall, an ad executive who thinks he's next in line for a top job. But his boss (Alan Alda) passes him over for Darcy Maguire (Helen Hunt), headhunted from another agency. Nick declares war about the same time as, thanks to a happy accident, he develops the ability to read women's minds.
Turns out he was reared in Las Vegas as the pampered child of a showgirl, and has been doted on by admiring females ever since — especially Lola (Marisa Tomei) from the coffee shop near the office and his assistants (Valerie Perrine and Delta Burke). Other women in the office, he learns, pretend to like him but don't.
Because he feels embarrassed and because he wants to win a valuable account, Nick starts a crash programme in being a woman. This leads him to experiment with lip gloss, eye shadow, pantyhose and plucking.
By now you will have figured out that Nick and Darcy are going to fall in love. By now you will have figured out that, at first anyway, this will not be a match made in heaven — especially with a jerk like Nick involved.
It's not the greatest movie you'll see this year but it's not boring and is often very funny. In Hollywood these days, that's quite high praise.
Running time: 110 mins
Rental: Today
