BEFORE: "Sixteen Candles" starred Anthony Michael Hall, who was in "Vacation" with Chevy Chase, who was in "Foul Play" with Goldie Hawn, who was in "The First Wives Club" with Sarah Jessica Parker, who was in "Sex and the City 2" with John Corbett, who is in tonight's film. That took me a while - damn, there must be a shorter path. (EDIT: Yes, Joan Cusack was in "Sixteen Candles" and also was in "Raising Helen" with John Corbett or I could have gone through John Cusack, who was in "Serendipity" with Corbett.)
THE PLOT: A love story set in Brooklyn, where a florist who abides by a strict five-date-limit with any man finds herself wanting more with the new restaurateur in town.
AFTER: The IMDB got it wrong, the plot there says the film is set in Manhattan. The characters clearly state they're in Brooklyn several times, plus the characters eat at Terrace Bagels, a noted Park Slope eatery that I used to frequent. Check your facts, IMDB!
Perhaps I should have watched this next to "Valentine's Day", since both films feature characters who are florists. But this also has a lot in common with "(500) Days of Summer", since both films feature female characters who don't believe in true love or long relationships - and this film also covers a particular time-span, in this case a year between two February 14ths.
Tonight's florist, Genevieve, played by Nia Vardalos (last seen in, umm...nothing) believes that the best part of a relationship is in the first 5 dates, so she agrees to end every relationship at that point. Ridiculous? Or...genius? I can see this working if the dates aren't going well, but there seems to be a gap in the logic if things ARE going well. Besides, if she clues in her dating partner on her formula, wouldn't that make date #5 really sad, knowing that it's going to be the last one?
As you might imagine, there's a psychological reason why she doesn't let things go past the fifth date - but if she were a man, we'd just say he had a fear of commitment, and let it go at that? Why does a woman with the same fear have to be portrayed as broken somehow?
Even more annoying, Nia Vardalos seems to be one of those actresses who's been convinced that she only looks good from a certain angle, so she's always sure to face the camera at JUST that angle - it's the Streisand syndrome.
Another problem is that the movie is overly concerned with both Genevieve's rules, and dating rules in general. I would like to see a story about two people, not a universal dating guide. But damn, the movie sucker-punched me at the end.
Also starring Rachel Dratch (last seen in "Click"), Judah Friedlander (last seen in "Meet Dave"), friend of the blog Jay O. Sanders (last seen in "Half Nelson"), and Mike Starr (last seen in "Born on the Fourth of July"), with cameos from Ian Gomez and Dan Finnerty (of the Dan Band).
RATING: 4 out of 10 cups of sake
Actually, technically, Terrace Bagels was located in Windsor Terrace (hence the name) but isn't there at all anymore, so we'll let that one go...
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