Surprisingly Entertaining

Rating: 7/10 (13 March 2005)

Dragged to this movie I was feeling hopeless, but this (somewhat predictable) story works. Will Smith is Alex, a matchmaker whose consulting business is based on helping desperate / in-love men create opportunities for seducing the loves of their lives. However, his skills at relationships comes from a sense of revenge and protection rather than his own heart. Alex meets Sara, an equally protective woman who's beautiful and guarded (played very well by Eva Mendes). As you might expect, as Alex helps his main client Albert (played a bit too silly by Kevin James) meet the wealthy and untouchable Allegra (Amber Vallenta does a surprisingly good job for a model), Alex discovers his own heart opening to Sara.
Of course there's confusion, a mix-up, some tragedy, and of course resolution all in a neat package. While the final 10 minutes wrap the movie up nice and tidy, the movie is enjoyable as a clichéd dating film, with beautiful scenes of the streets of New York (NYPL, Pastis, Central Park, SoHo, Helmut Lang store, etc.).
The soundtrack could have been better, though it wasn't distracting either. There is a Guy Pearce lookalike who plays a sleazebag, and Michael Rappaport (Mr. Superfly from Cop Land) is in briefly as Alex's friend.
All the pieces come together and the film, as I said, is surprisingly entertaining.