One of the exceptionally few romantic comedies that are worth watching

Rating: 7/10 (29 August 2004)

This is one of the very few romantic comedies that work; first of all, it has likable, non-stereotypical characters. Second, the theme and basic idea is pretty good, original and interesting. Third, the humor rarely seems forced, but rather comes naturally. The basic idea that the film is based on is a prostitute meeting a business man, and them discovering how much they actually have in common, and how easy and obvious choice it is to be together, despite their differences, mainly in career choices. That theme is pretty original, and it works great in the film. The actors have great on-screen chemistry, and are, for the most part, well casted. The plot is good, and has a pretty good pace; you're rarely bored, even on when re-watching the movie for the fourth and fifth time. The acting is good. Roberts and Gere obviously understand their characters; Roberts perfectly captures the hooker "mentality", and Gere portrays his character believably. I also found various of the supporting characters to be very credible, well-acted and interesting. I actually would have liked if Laura San Giacomo's character, Kit De Luca, would have had more screen-time than she did, as I found her to be one of the better and more interesting members of the supporting cast. The film, of course, has its share of romance, and "romantic" scenes and such, but don't let this discourage you, the male viewer who could care less about romance in movies, from watching it; the film has more comedy and humor than it has romance, and the comedy is usually entertaining. The humor is pretty good, though I guess the whole "main character experiences a totally new world for him/her" scenario is kind of worn out, by now. It doesn't feel too "been there, done that" here, though. The film made it sufficiently interesting and entertaining to watch Roberts experience how it is to be rich, or, at least, be with someone who is rich. Not much else to say... the soundtrack is pretty good too. All in all, a quite entertaining and worthwhile romantic comedy, that is worth watching, even for people who usually loathe romance in movies(like me). I recommend it to pretty much anyone who enjoys romantic comedies, comedies in general and fans of any of the actors. This is probably also a good movie to get for guys whose girlfriends demand to see a romantic comedy, and they want to be able to sit through it too. 7/10