I generally do not like chick flicks, and even if you told me that this was the best chick flick ever made, it would be hard to get me to the theater. Thankfully, I ignored the description of the movie and just went in knowing that Cameron Diaz was supposed to be amazing. I was not disappointed, in fact, I was pleasantly surprised. The film follows the lives of several women living in the same neighborhood in Los Angeles as they seek love. Imagine Slacker with women and a little bit of Short Cuts. Each of the stories connect in small ways that make a clever whole.
Some of the best performances by leading women actors can be found in this film. Glenn Close, Holly Hunter, Calista Flockhart and Any Brennemen are spectacular. This is an intimate portrait of the lives of women in quiet turmoil. Perhaps the best story is that of a single mother who becomes romantically involved with a dwarf. It is the most touching, real romance I have seen in years. Cameron Diaz plays an attractive blind woman who tragically is far more aware of what is happening around her than her sighted suitors would suspect. Diaz’s performance is subtle and compelling. Holly Hunter becomes pregnant by her lover, a man who is cheating on his wife, and quickly decides to “take care of it.” During the procedure, we only see a tight close up of her face in which she experiences every emotion in a few short minutes – anger, regret, hate, relief, calm – this is some of the best acting I have seen this year. The stories are small but the outcome of each means so much to the characters, you’ll find yourself drawn into their very real world. This is already on my best of the Sundance film fest list.
