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 Some
people think that film has stagnated and there’s no innovation
like there was in the good old days when Scorcese, Spielberg and
Lucas first hit the scene. With directors like Paul Thomas Anderson,
Sam Mendes and David Fincher on the rise, that point of view sounds
more and more like it’s coming from people who are out of
touch. However, all of the television show remake movies that
are out there don’t make a strong case for the modern film.
Everyone loves the Brady Bunch. No problem there. But with movies
like the Avengers, George of the Jungle and Dudley Do Right, it’s
clear that there’s something missing. So, Charlie’s
Angels isn’t that big a shock. Fortunately, it takes the
cue from Mission Impossible, building on a set of characters with
a more modern plot.
Just in case
you don’t know the premise of the show that made Farrah Fawcett
poster girl of the 70’s, Charlie’s Angels is about three
brilliant women who are hired by Charlie, a man they’ve never
seen, to help out people in distress. Ideally it’s like having
Bond and the Bond girl in one – and there’s three of
them. The word subtle doesn’t seem to be in Aaron Spelling’s
vocabulary. Dylan Sanders (Drew Barrymore) opens the film coming
out of the Chad’s (played by husband Tom Greene) boat. Alex
Munday (Lucy Lui) is a homemaker girlfriend to actor Jason (Matt
LeBlanc). Matt LeBlanc not free from the Friends family big screen
curse did the right thing by taking a small role in this movie.
Cameron Diaz is innocent, awkward and boy crazy as Natalie Cook.
All three angels leave their personalities behind when it’s
time for business, though. They head to their lush angel lair,
provided by the mysterious Charlie, to meet with Boswell (Bill
Murray) for their next assignment. This case naturally concerns
a young computer mogul, Eric Knox (Sam Rockwell) and his partner
(Kelly Lynch). The young computer genius is kidnapped and held
for ransom. The angels encounter the Thin Man (Crispin Glover
– who should have a part in every movie) on their hunt for
Eric Knox. A few twists and turns later, the angels uncover a
whole new dimension to the case and find themselves rescuing the
kidnapped Boswell.
There was
a buzz around this movie that it would be empowering for little
girls and show strong women as the leads in a big budget action
flick. This movie spends most of its time showing how brilliant
women can dress up as belly dancers or in lederhosen in order
to stupefy chauvinistic men and gain information from them. This
movie makes Ginger Spice look like Joan Baez.
However, analyzing
the feminist ramifications of Charlie’s Angels should give
anyone pause. So, I took a deep breath, vowed to switch to decaf,
and realized that I was taking this movie much too seriously.
Perhaps I switched to the analysis of this movie because it was
a better alternative to the other option, that this movie merely
has mass appeal and it’s all just explosions and bad jokes.
There are
certain sacrifices made in a movie that is supposed to have mass
appeal. Even so, there are still some things that shouldn’t
be overlooked. The action sequences were great. However, there
is a difference between being as exciting as The Matrix and ripping
off The Matrix. The Matrix was very distinctive and very popular.
That shouldn’t give the green light to directors to copy
it. In addition to all of their disguises to uncover information,
you need only look to Natalie’s Soul Train dance sequence
to see how campy this movie is. The jokes degenerate into double
entendre unworthy of most sitcoms. “Feel free to stick things
in my slot.” Sure thing.
One also wonders
what the hell was Bill Murray doing in Charlie’s Angels?
For every Operation Dumbo Drop or The Man Who Knew Too Little,
he’ll do a Hamlet or a Rushmore. There’s merit in keeping
your audience guessing with the film roles you choose but it’s
still disappointing.
This film
also isn’t safe from Drew Barrymore’s real life love
interests. Luke Wilson (Drew’s ex boyfriend), whose career
is still baffling, plays Natalie’s love interest. Tom Greene
also adds his distinctive humor to the movie.
It was playful
and I could see how other people could like it. I didn’t.
But who cares? It’s going to rake in the dough. That’s
just the way the modern movie is. I’m just waiting for A-Team
the movie. That’s going to kick ass.
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