Saturday, October 17, 2009

MOVIE REVIEW - MY LIFE IN RUINS


MOVIE REVIEW MY LIFE IN RUINS
Having travelled on several interstate bus trips, I could relate to the pitfalls facing My Life In Ruins' Greece bound tourists. Trapped on a coach with certain individuals you'd normally cross the street to avoid, some journeys have been infinitely long. Whilst the delights of Dubbo may not match those of the Greek islands, upon viewing this film I can say I received the best deal. Desperate in its recycled gags and antiquated humour, My Life In Ruins' stereotypical passengers amble aboard a busload of clichés mirroring the worst memories of my fateful treks. Working for a low budget bus tour company, Greek history professor Georgia (Nia Vardalos) hates her job. This is made more insufferable due to the latest bunch of tourists demanding her time. Filled with dumb Americans, drunk Australians, randy Spaniards and thieving Brits, she needs all the help from the Greek gods to see her through. As her lowest point arrives, it's the passengers who unwittingly provide her salvation with one of them, Irv (Richard Dreyfuss), extolling wisdom that would make Athena proud. After finding success with My Big Fat Greek Wedding, writer/actress Vardalos' star was in ascendancy. With this new fame she followed this with drag queen comedy Connie & Carla, which failed to find an audience. She certainly won't find any with her latest effort which seems a curious retrograde step back into bawdy innuendo driven humour. Although this brand of comedy has its fans, it seems out of place here as the charm which endeared Vardalos to so many is missing. There is not one single likeable character to be found with the film's inclusiveness ensuring every nationality cops a pasting. Of the many angles in which one can criticise, its main one must surely be its laziness. With a concept ripe for some genuinely good laughs, the writers instead go for cheap shortcuts with some seriously awful material. This general fake sincerity also extends to the location shooting. Only a small portion shot in Greece with the rest bizarrely filmed in Spain. It's pretty sad seeing Dreyfuss in this, although he spits out his woeful lines with such venom you can't help but be amused. Perhaps he realised he was starring in the most vanilla film of his career - full of predictable and lewd situations aimed at audiences willing to laugh at anything. Unfortunately for Nia Vardalos' fans, about the only ruin in evidence is the state of her career. Playing with a script unsuitable to what made her initially appealing; her next outing needs to play to her strengths before the help of Aphrodite is needed to resurrect her once glowing talents.  

Move Review Rating 1 / 10  
Movie Review by Patrick Moore  
MY LIFE IN RUINS released in Australia on Thursday 16th July 2009.  
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Patrick Moore's Movie Review is an alternative look at current movie releases in Australia.
 

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