Last Holiday Review
by samseescinema (sammeriam AT comcast DOT net)January 15th, 2006
Last Holiday
reviewed by Sam Osborn of www.samseescinema.com
rating: 1.5 out of 4
Director: Wayne Wang
Cast: Queen Latifah, LL Cool J, Timothy Hutton
Screenplay: Jeffrey Price, Peter S. Seaman
MPAA Classification: PG-13 (some sexual reference)
It was a tell-tale sign when Last Holiday's release date was delayed for two weeks AFTER the holidays, a smattering of dates notorious for studio dumping of probable duds. And the studios were correct in their decision, of course. Last Holiday is a disaster; a film that would mar Paramount's reputation for years had it been released on Christmas day. It's dopey and tired, desperately reaching for comedy that refuses to rear its head; reaching instead for morals and lessons so bluntly forced that they'd be more fit for pre-pubescent daytime television. We walk away feeling as though we've been hit by a bus, or maybe turned into a beaten piņata. Last Holiday pummels us with its "lessons", and even goes so far as to sneakily inject tidbits of religious dogma and bizarre racial generalizations. And to make matters worse, director Wayne Wang feels it's necessary to carry out this debacle for 112 minutes, causing the whole affair to last for a grating cinematic lifetime.
Queen Latifah plays Georgia Byrd, a reserved, well-mannered, church-going, dietary, and single cookware saleswoman at a non-descript department store. Her treasure is a neatly assembled scrapbook entitled "Possibilities", documenting her secret affection for Sean Matthews (LL Cool J), the grill salesman. Georgia goes about her days quietly, participating in the gospel choir and cooking meals with her idol, Emeril, on the Food Channel. Her situation changes, however, when Georgia's diagnosed with Lampanson's Disease after colliding into a cabinet at work. With only two weeks left to live, Georgia decides to catch as much life as her soon-emptied bank account will allow. She flies to Europe, staying in the Presidential Suite at a mountaintop resort, taking multiple spa appointments, shopping for lavish adornments, and socializing with the most scathing and important of people.
Last Holiday carries on as we expect it to, cashing in on wearily predictable moments and the inevitable "gotcha" happy ending. Georgia gallivants about with dollar-induced thrills for 100 minutes, then realizes money can't buy happiness and, instead, finds love. But Wang's love story is without heart and bursting with unearned sentimentality. So Wang instead shifts focus onto the morals he pushes, creating ill-mannered characters for Georgia to convert. We're pointedly presented with Matthew Kragen (Timothy Hutton) to represent Greed, Ms. Burns (Alicia Witt) to represent Infidelity, and Senator Dillings (Giancarlo Esposito) to offensively represent the "black man in a white man's world" who has betrayed his hometown needs for a trip to Europe. Wayne Wang may not be purposely insinuating as such, but his Senator Dillings certainly has racial meaning (a habit of Hollywood that largely goes unnoticed).
The film's saving grace, however, is in its fortunate avoidance of loud, stupid slapstick antics. Last Holiday's bad enough without cheesy sound effects and banana peels. Wang smartly steers clear of these, save for one moderately irritating snowboarding romp. He also tones Queen Latifah's usual loud-mouthed, attitude-driven performance down a bit, allowing her to showcase some actual talent with her reserved, timid character. She does well, despite the screenplay bearing down on her at every angle.
But this saving grace is ultimately eclipsed by Last Holiday's supreme lack of subtlety. Films about "letting go" can be done well in a mature, adult-oriented film. But the message must not be paraded about like a boy running rampant through a dinner party, displaying his treasured ball of lint to the adults. Real adults aren't affected by these mish-mash morals. There's no reality to them. No dimension beyond the silky red dress on Queen Latifah. Some may laugh and applaud Georgia's show of newfound confidence and pride, but only children would find something lasting from this film.
-www.samseescinema.com
Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
