Bland. That is one of many words that you can use to describe the body of work for director Steve Herek. From Rock Star to Holy Man one can’t help but agree with that observation. His films tend to be by the numbers but effective in telling a story but have no special qualities in them. He still manages to get the chance to direct talented casts with people like Eddie Murphy and Mark Wahlberg in the highlighting the casts of his last two films. This trend continues with his latest film, a romantic comedy starring Angelina Jolie and Edward Burns called Life, or Something Like It.
Lanie Kerrigan (Angelina Jolie) is a happy and successful TV reporter until she is told by a homeless psychic (Tony Shalhoub) that she’s going to die soon. As you can expect, this is quite a surprise to the reporter. At first, she tries to brush off the comment but soon finds herself wanting to change her life because of what the man told her.
With this film, Angelina Jolie stars in her first really light film, at least considering the other films that she has appeared in such as Tomb Raider and Original Sin. Since this is such a departure for her one might wonder if she can pull light material off with the same vigor that she embraces dark material. Luckily for the public, she is able to do so with skill. She seems to be having real fun portraying her character. Edward Burns as her male friend also seems to be having fun and it shows. He really delivers his lines with a panache that makes him a very interesting character. Tony Shalhoub revels in his kooky psychic character’s machinations.
The script by John Scott Shepherd is effective and appropriately lighthearted. Some of the lines are a little corny though but the talented cast manages to overshadow some of the faults of Shepherd’s script.
Herek directs with a very professional but not stunning look to the film. He has in this film probably the best script of all his films and it shows. With the good script all he really has to do is film and rely on his cast and script to hopefully overshadow his deficiencies. This is his first film where the aforementioned deficiencies don’t shine through.
Overall, Life, or Something Like It is a surprisingly entertaining romantic comedy because of its great cast and a solid script.
Rating: 83
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