Along Came Polly Review
by David N. Butterworth (dnb AT dca DOT net)January 19th, 2004
ALONG CAME POLLY
A film review by David N. Butterworth
Copyright 2004 David N. Butterworth
*1/2 (out of ****)
The best word to describe "Along Came Polly," the new Ben Stiller comedy, is amiable, and that amiableness alone will most likely keep you in your seat, since there's no overwhelming reason to leave, especially if it's cold out. But those expecting to see Stiller in fine comic form, in that manic, frustrated,
put-upon way (like his recent turns in "Duplex" and "Zoolander"), will be disappointed.
This, I should add, is not entirely Stiller's fault since unlike his previous outings, he has absolutely no material to work with here. The writing is just...
well, missing. Even trying to describe the film's flimsy plot raises a question:
Reuben Feffer (Stiller) is a hyper-anxious risk management analyst whose wife ("Will & Grace"'s Debra Messing) cheats on him on their honeymoon, sending Reuben
into a tailspin. But along comes Polly Prince (a sexier-than-usual Jennifer Aniston), a waitress/aspiring graphic children's novelist whom Reuben once knew
in high school and... And what? The film feels more like an outline than a fully developed script, as if "Meet the Parents"' scribe turned director John Hamburg had a few rough ideas (including the obligatory bathroom scene, a salsa
showcase, and an unnecessary blind ferret) but forgot to develop them further. Reuben's fear of risk is as underdeveloped as Polly's free-spiritedness and you can never really buy the attraction between them. Likewise the supporting players--Philip Seymour Hoffman as a has-been actor, Alec Baldwin as Reuben's insurance company boss, Hank Azaria as a buff French nudist scuba
instructor--all
nobly attempt to breathe life into their underdeveloped characters. Should you avoid this film? No. Go simply to catch the preview for Stiller's upcoming
"Starsky & Hutch." This two-minute spot is funnier--and more smartly put together--than
all 90 of "Along Came Polly"'s amiable but essentially worthless minutes.
--
David N. Butterworth
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