Ugh

Rating: Null/10 (21 January 2004)

I had the opportunity to see a preview of this film last week, and am glad I didn't have to pay for it. Overall, it's a great concept - probably was a fabulous script - but the execution is terrible. I didn't expect great acting from Ashton Kutcher, but he's apparently studied under the Joey Tribianni school of acting (i.e., portray emotion by pretending you smell a fart) and probably didn't graduate. The special effects are nice, and there are some cool plot points - and others which are infuriatingly stupid and nonsensical. (A 7 year old boy convinces a pedophile to stop his with four minutes of dialogue. Yeah, right. Too bad the mental health community never tried that.) Some of the most suspenseful moments are destroyed by bizarre acting choices, as when Ashton throws in a goofy run during what should be a highly dramatic and tension filled escape scene. The audience I saw this with cracked up then - as they did at other unintentionally funny moments. Somehow I think the success of the "Scary Movie" franchise is to blame, but for me, slapstick is a distraction when I'm watching something pretending to be a serious suspense thriller.
If you're looking for an entertaining film about going back and changing the future, rent "Groundhog Day" or any of the "Back to the Future" films. In those, at least you are supposed to laugh, and your laughter won't be followed by a groan.