SYNOPSIS:
Ryden Malby (Alexis Bledel) has a master plan. Graduate college, get a great job, hang out with her best friend (Zach Gilford) and find the perfect guy. But her plan spins hilariously out of control when she's forced to move back home with her eccentric family. By the time she lands her dream job, Ryden realizes it's meaningless without the man of her dreams... and the people she loves.
Michael Keaton, Jane Lynch (TV's "Glee") and Carol Burnett co-star in this offbeat romantic comedy that proves you can still end up on top, even when your life is turned upside-down!
MOVIE REVIEW:
It is a phase we columnists at this humble website are familiar with. After graduation, we are thrown into this thing called life, and we have to find a job, that is, amongst other commitments like family and the potential other half in life. So this movie should have naturally connected with us, other than the fact that the protagonist looks like Alexis Bledel of Gilmore Girls fame (most of the columnists here are guys, if you must know), and the other teeny weeny bit that our lives didn’t seem to turn out as well as hers in the movie.
Bledel plays Ryden Malby, who is a good planner. You see, she plans to do well in high school, get a good college scholarship, find a grand apartment to stay in and land a dream job at an established publishing house. But when another girl gets in line and steals her dream job, she has to move back to her childhood home, where an eccentric family awaits. There are also two men waiting for her – one is a geeky best friend, and one is a handsomely hot neightbour. How would her life turn out after the original plan fails? Let’s just say that there is a happy ending in store when the 88 minute movie ends.
The Vicky Jenson directed flick is lightweight and inconsequential, which actually makes it a breeze to sit through. Besides, eye candy comes in the form of the every so pleasant Bledel (also of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants fame) for the guys, and Rodrigo Santoro’s (300) good looking neighbour for the girls. For the older viewers, there is always Michael Keaton’s father character (he was Tim Burton’s first Batman, if you remember) to look out for. For everyone else, there is the slightly adorable Zach Gilford (Rise) as the boy who will get the girl at the end of the day despite his less than hunky physique, and child actor Bobby Coleman (Martian Child) as the really odd younger brother.
Everything else is a humdrum and conventional lighthearted affair. Besides the somewhat perky introduction, the setup is a been there done that approach, which will have you yawning within half an hour if you already had a worn out day. The tiresome storytelling style is made up of radio friendly songs to convey the characters’ emotions, and a typical feel good structure that will leave no one remembering what they have seen the following day. If you are looking for something to browse through in a jiffy without having to crack too many brain cells, then this movie is for you. Now, if only we can deal with our real life issues that well, and have them all settled in no time.
SPECIAL FEATURES :
For a rather forgettable movie like this, we are surprised that there is quite a bit of extras on this Code 3 DVD. There are 13 minutes of 10 Deleted and Alternate Scenes, a catchy “One Day” Music Video by Jack Svaoretti, and a four minute featurette “Real Life Advice with Alexis Beldel & Zach Gilford which presents itself as a casual talk show discussing the two young actors’ career choices.
Know Your Strengths: Career Advice is a six minute clip where a book author advises you on what jobs to take on after graduation – one of those life coaches who publish books for a living. In the three minute How Not to Get a Job, we get 10 pieces of advice based on the movie on what not to do if you want to walk out of your job interview happily. In three minutes, A Guide to Moving Back Home uses more footage from the movie to tell you what to do when you move back home upon moving out from campus. The two minute Dress for Success has the costume designer telling you about how colours and other little touches may help you get your dream job. Rounding up the platter is the 14 minute Post Grad Confidential which has the cast and crew talking about how the movie was made.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The movie’s visual transfer is pristine, and is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 English.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD
RATING :
Review
by John Li
Posted
on 2 May 2010
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