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Serendipity 2001 |
Review by Jonathan Cornwell |
Directed by Peter Chelsom
PG-13, 86 min. (scene of sexuality, brief language) |
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Starring: John Cusack, Kate Beckinsale, Jeremy Piven, Molly Shannon, Eugene Levy, John Corbett, Bridget Moynahan
Producers: Peter Abrams, Robert L. Levy, Simon Fields
Screenplay: Marc Klein
Cinematography: John de Borman
Distributor: Miramax Films
Released: 10.05.01 (Wide) |
Rating:
  (out of ) |
Recommending this film must come with a caveat - if you enjoy a film that pairs its romantic couple together for most of the
story, you'll be disappointed with Serendipity. However, if you don't mind waiting to see the inevitable conclusion unfold after
a long period of the romantic couples' separation, then you'll probably enjoy it. Director Peter Chelsom is interested in
building tension in the audience for the film's climax; however, since it's unavoidable in this type of film, it creates more a feeling
of frustration that anything else. Despite this, Serendipity is a pleasant film with a few laughs and generally succeeds in
satisfying most moviegoers.
Jonathan Trager (John Cusack) meets Sara Thomas (Kate Beckinsale) in a New York City department store during the Christmas
season 1994. Their small interaction over a pair of gloves thrusts them into one evening of romantic bliss, almost perfect in
every way. Despite this instant connection, they both have significant others, and agree to let fate decide their future. He
writes his phone number on a $5 bill, and she writes hers inside a book cover. The money is put into circulation, and the book
is sold to a used book store. If one item makes its way back to its counterpart, they're meant to be together. Alas, it doesn't
happen, and years later they once again embark on the search for one another just before their impending marraiges. They
are accompanied by their best friends, Jeremy Piven with Cusack and Molly Shannon with Beckinsale, and near misses and
hopeless situations arise.
It's a fun and clever story, but realistically, who would do this? Not many people I'm afraid, and that's one of the film's
problems. It's also an obvious way to keep the main characters apart, a move that is instantly questioned by the majority
of audience members during the film. Only the good performances from the actors save this film from ignominiousness.
Cusack has grown accustomed to playing these type of roles (High Fidelity, America's Sweethearts), and his believability
plays a big part in accepting this film on its face value. Beckinsale (Pearl Harbor) is a rising star, blessed with great beauty
and solid acting skills, and easily portrays her part with convincing zeal. Maybe the film's lightest and most memorable moments
come from Eugene Levy (American Pie), a department store salesman who makes life hard on Trager, who is trying to find
Sarah.
In the end, Serendipity succeeds on at least one level, that of the hopeless romantic variety. But there are enough laughs
and typical scenarios that make the film enjoyable to everyone except the most hard-hearted among us. With the painfully
obvious lack of truly enjoyable films out there right now, Serendipity hits a sweet spot that is consistently missed by most
current releases in theaters today.
© 2001 Jonathan Cornwell
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 |
 | Masterpiece - Film perfection |
| Excellent - A Must See |
| Good - Highly Recommended |
| Fair - Worth seeing |
| Average - Viewable, but not recommended |
| Below average - View at own risk |
| Poor - Avoid at all costs |
| Very poor - An embarassment to the film industry |
| Zero | Awful - One of the worst films ever made |
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