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Tuesday, 28 August 2012

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Made for light entertainment

Maid in Manhattan:



Jennifer Lopez and Tyler Posey make a charming mother and son

Wayne Wang's Maid in Manhattan may have generated some interest due to the presence of the glamorous Jennifer Lopez as its heroine but a couple of episodes into the movie and you are boomeranged by clichés.

This rags-to-riches tale revolves around Marisa Ventura, a maid working at a classy Manhattan hotel. She is also a single mother trying to keep up with her fast-growing son. While cleaning the room of a wealthy woman, Marisa is caught in the act of trying on a creamy Dolce and Gabbana coat belonging to a wealthy lady by reputed American political hotshot Christopher Marshall who assumes she is a guest. He invites her to join him for a walk and later send her an invitation to meet him for a meal.

When the real Caroline Lane, the name Marisa had given Marshall, turns up for the date he is confused. He later meets her on the street and invites for a dinner dance. Attracted by his charm, Marisa keeps up the deception until fate interferes and she is forced to reveal her true identity to him. There the infamously romantic question lingers: is Marshall's love for her strong enough to bridge the gap between their worlds?

Interestingly both are in similar positions vying for power: he is a white man aiming for a senate seat while she is a Puerto Rican maid aiming for a managerial position at the Bereford Hotel.

One of the few plus points in Maid in Manhattan is when Marisa swallows her shame and accepts her second-class citizenship in front of the press. Similarly Marshall too put aside his pride and reveals his feelings to Marisa at the end of the tale. Thus the fairytale element is complete and the 'and they lived happily ever after' ending follows. The Cinderella element of Maid in Manhattan is all too predictable despite the added features of the heroine being a single mother and the hero being a congressman.

The theme has been exhausted many times before in countless movies and productions like Pretty Woman and My Fair Lady comes to mind. Marisa is practically ordered to go to the ball to meet her prince by her superior and is handed her ball gown and jewellery on a platter. One cliché following another also irritates viewers who have paid their bucks to watch something new.There are hardly any sparks between the two protagonists Jennifer Lopez and Ralph Fiennes. Their feelings for each other seem imposed rather than natural and they seem increasingly uncomfortable in each other's arms. In contrast, Lopez's relationship with young Tyler Posey who plays her son makes a charming picture. Despite her vocal talent Lopez does not embody the charisma to carry off this suppose-to-be rom-com. The laughs are rare and most of the scenes annoy rather than entertain. Lopez's character is hardly developed and most of her attraction is judged by her appearance rather than her traits.

No audience sympathy is lost on her and neither do they warm up to Fiennes who portrays a extremely unlikable hero. Not only is her too old for Lopez but needs to hone his acting skills.

The movie even runs along somewhat similar lines of Lopez's previous flick, The Wedding Planner. It is time she got out of her comfort zone and tried diverse roles.

'Maid in Manhattan' might keep hopeless romantics happy but mature audience would find it a bore. It does not address any serious topics, though there are a few references motivating the working class. But whole in whole it is made purely for entertainment purposes - an aspect that it sadly fails in.

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