Product: Coyote Ugly [VHS]
Rating: 4.0
Formulaic, yet Babe-alicious. Also, it's kind of sweet...
Piper Perabo plays Violet, the nice girl from Jersey who moves to NYC to try to make it big as a songwriter. She lands a job as a "coyote" to support herself while she gets established, singing and dancing in a wild (wild, but still basically PG-13) bar. During her personal voyage of self-discovery and growth, she meets a guy (Adam Garcia) and has various adventures, and seeks to ultimately prevail over the shyness she must conquer, to reach her goals.As a guy, I rented this for predictable reasons. Ohhh, those previews... MERCY!!! However, this really is not a simple babefest in any way. It really is mostly about Violet's personal odyssey to overcome her fears and achieve her dreams. Be warned that although it is certainly sweet, it doesn't exactly stick to your ribs. The dialog is monumentally uninspired, and probably more cliche-ridden than any movie I've seen since... ummm.. well, it's in a different genre, but I'd have to mention "Bats." Come on, writers! You could have done better than that. Anyway, Violet's journey is sort of a cross between the stories of Olivia Newton-John's character in "Grease" and Tom Cruise's character in "Cocktail." That sounds freaky, but you'll see what I mean. Piper Perabo's Violet reminds me of a sort of cross between a waifish Amanda Peet and a nineties version of Audrey Hepburn, living out the story of a latter-day Minnie Pearl... There's a really fun soundtrack, which is always a plus... Also, the whole movie features a cornucopia of suspiciously well-toned midriffs -- I can just imagine all the girls in the film doing sit-up and "crunch" marathons between takes.Watch for Bud Cort, who played Harold in the cult favorite "Harold and Maude!" He plays the guy in the coffee shop, named Romero, who first introduces Violet to the other "coyotes," and who gives her a free slice of pie to cheer her up.Supporting actors in general do a good job with the lines they're given. Maria Bello plays up her part well, as the brassy, tough-as-nails Lil, who owns the bar, and who becomes Violet's friend. Izabella Miko is somehow simultaneously babyishly cute, and devilish-looking, as Cammie. Tyra Banks is gorgeous, of course, and actually a pretty good actress, I thought. Bridget Moynahan is terrific as Rachel, the ferocious grrrrl dancer with a heart of gold -- she has such a strong presence it might get in her way, looking for future roles. Think of Linda Hamilton from the second Terminator movie, crossed with the Terminator himself, and you'll get a sense of what her character is like... John Goodman and Adam Garcia are great too -- heck, everyone does a good job, it's just that the lines are so ....Basically, this movie is a lot of fun, and it has an uplifting message, especially for younger viewers. If you want crackling dialogue, see "Glengarry Glen Ross" -- if you want a sweet movie that happens to have a lot of major babes in it, see "Coyote Ugly." Two thumbs up.