I'm normally a huge Julia Roberts fan and while I found this romantic comedy entertaining enough, it cannot compare with her fabulous earlier movie, Pretty Woman, also starring Richard Gere. Nor did I care for it as much as her other comedy romances (most notably Notting Hill) or most of the Meg Ryan ones, especially Sleepless in Seattle.
The story revolves around a lovely young woman, Maggie Carpenter, who has left a series of three would be grooms partway through their wedding ceremony. A reporter named Ike Graham gets fired after writing an exaggerated article of half truths on her story, so to salvage his career, he travels to her small hometown, where he attempts to ferret out her true tale and get the scoop on her upcoming fourth nuptials. Needless to say, Ike does not prove very popular with his journalistic subject, Maggie, as he harasses her family & friends for info. However, he begins to feel protective of her when townsfolk mock her track record of jilting her fiancé at the altar.
Julia Roberts is invariably appealing & sympathetic in her roles, and typically this proves true in her portrayal here of Maggie. Richard Gere is competent as the journalistic vulture, Ike. I don't fault the lack of chemistry as much as the story, which simply isn't as good as Pretty Woman.
Of course romantic comedies are never exactly bastions of realism, but this tale where such a young woman has already run away from three weddings and is now embarking upon number four, really seems too far fetched even for this genre. One would suspect that any prospective groom would be quite leery by now, and why does Maggie keep planning these gala ceremonies if she suspects she might ultimately get cold feet? All in all, it's a cute, light hearted, & entertaining movie with some good scenes, but definitely not the best of its genre. For sure, it lacks the magic of Pretty Woman but judge this one on its own merits.
The story revolves around a lovely young woman, Maggie Carpenter, who has left a series of three would be grooms partway through their wedding ceremony. A reporter named Ike Graham gets fired after writing an exaggerated article of half truths on her story, so to salvage his career, he travels to her small hometown, where he attempts to ferret out her true tale and get the scoop on her upcoming fourth nuptials. Needless to say, Ike does not prove very popular with his journalistic subject, Maggie, as he harasses her family & friends for info. However, he begins to feel protective of her when townsfolk mock her track record of jilting her fiancé at the altar.
Julia Roberts is invariably appealing & sympathetic in her roles, and typically this proves true in her portrayal here of Maggie. Richard Gere is competent as the journalistic vulture, Ike. I don't fault the lack of chemistry as much as the story, which simply isn't as good as Pretty Woman.
Of course romantic comedies are never exactly bastions of realism, but this tale where such a young woman has already run away from three weddings and is now embarking upon number four, really seems too far fetched even for this genre. One would suspect that any prospective groom would be quite leery by now, and why does Maggie keep planning these gala ceremonies if she suspects she might ultimately get cold feet? All in all, it's a cute, light hearted, & entertaining movie with some good scenes, but definitely not the best of its genre. For sure, it lacks the magic of Pretty Woman but judge this one on its own merits.