Flawed chick flick

Rating: 3/10 (6 December 2006)

The new girlfriend and I saw two serious flawed movies in the past few days: the JFK memorial, Bobby, and the Cameron Diaz promo vehicle, The Holiday.
Director Nancy Meyers wrote the wonderful Something's Gotta Give (2003) with its incredible performance by Diane Keaton, I Love Trouble (1994), Father of the Bride (1991), chick-flick extraordinaire Baby Boom (1987) and the charming Private Benjamin (1980). Yet none of those incredible scripts, insights or performances shine through here.
This obvious chick flick movie abounds with feel good emotions, but little ties the viewer to the characters. The Holiday feels like a Diaz showpiece, with slow mo scenes of her running through the woods, while Kate Winslet does the heavy lifting in the film. A glamorous movie about two gorgeous women exchanging beautiful homes and handsome, sensitive men, the movie is worth a "cuddly on the couch" rental.
If you and your sensitive partner do rent The Holiday, be sure watch Winslet. She does all of the acting in the film. Handsome Jude Law walks his blue eyes through the scenes. Rambunctious Jack Black plays his usual, albeit more sedate, self. The camera follows Diaz around as if she is a super-star. Winslet is the only one to portray any level of true emotion.
Like a Disney movie, nobody gets their make-up smudged. Nobody has warts  although challenged by the lack of true love in their lives, the female characters are all perfect. Old timer Eli Wallach gives an enjoyable appearance.
Oddly, the love stories are not what make this film good. There are some good lines. And a sub-plot that needs further exploration.
The leading characters are entangled with bad boy/girl relationships, which threatened to sink their current meaningful and real relationships. This is the sub-plot needing thoughtful exploration, but it is barely mentioned, merely glossed over between scenes of sushi lunches, black Mercedes limo and Diaz close-ups.