Product: What Women Want [VHS] (2000)
Rating: 5.0
A film that considers its audience to be intelligent
I bought this film with a little sense of foreboding. Anybody remember the film "Zapped" with Scott Baio? Sir Baio acquires a psychic mind-over-matter capability (i.e. he can blink like Jeanie) and how does he use his powers? Solving world hunger? Saving lives in surgery? Nope, he pops girls blouses off, and the film was shallow enough to spare us the burden of how a real girl would be humiliated, and cry alone in her room while her parents anguished over what was wrong.Was this movie to be Zapped II?It was clear early on that something delightful was in store due to the production values, and the subtle almost unnoticeable artful rocking of the camera. The supporting cast was excellent. I mean REALLY excellent.Mel Gibson initially is definitely a microwave-quick, get-to-the-point, predatory male. Every nuance of the character paints that picture.When he acquires his Big Trick, the film gets somewhat annoying. In hindsight I think it was smart to annoy the audience at that part of the film since it's clearly a plot twist that is disturbing to the character.With his new powers, Nick (Mel's character) first tries to use them in a predatory way. This didn't work, and as the film progresses he uses his powers in another way. SWITCHING TACTICS! A character is THINKING if they switch tactics. It is very enjoyable to watch a film with believable characters who come across as "thinking".Also, Nick becomes more of an emotion-based decider, and his mannerisms clearly display that. I have to equate the believability of his new mannerisms with Dustin Hoffman's character growth in Kramer vs Kramer. Further, as Nick understands women better, he exudes a Tom Hanks-like empathy that is very likeable. (Dustin Hoffman and Tom Hanks in the same paragraph. Mel really shines in this movie.)I would have done this and that scene a little differently, and this film isn't the end-all best film ever made, but when it was over I had this good feeling, happy I had watched it.I would call this movie a smart romantic comedy and highly recommend it.