Release Date: April 30, 2004
Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Julianne Moore, Parker Posey, Michael Sheen, Frances Fisher
Directed by: Peter Howitt
Written by: Aline Brosh McKenna, Robert Harling
Distributed by: New Line Cinema
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (sexual content, language)
Laws of Attraction is a romantic comedy that’s missing pieces of its own generic formula. It has two big stars -- Pierce Brosnan and Julianne Moore -- facing off in a classic and potentially charming situation, but only one of them delivers that charm. Brosnan is the winner, showing up Moore, who is either miscast or in an unusual funk here. The movie itself isn’t all that wonderful to begin with, but it doesn’t help when the female lead hardly fits her character and thus ruins any possible chemistry with her romantic screen mate.
In the fashion of courtroom love stories like 1949’s Adam’s Rib or more recent fare like Down With Love and Intolerable Cruelty, Laws of Attraction pits two high-profile lawyers against each other to create a comedic mix of professional rivalry and unexpected romance. Brosnan and Moore are foils to each other at first, she being a highly respected, by-the-book divorce attorney and he acting as a New York City newcomer who has never lost a case. She’s a loveless woman who operates on strict guidelines, and he’s a visionary man who gets by exceptionally well with his dashing charisma. They’re up against each other on a divorce case, and rivalry and romance simultaneously light up between them.
Sounds cute enough, especially with the possibility of two noteworthy stars playing off each other. But again, it’s only Brosnan that fulfills his end of the bargain; he’s the only one adding any sharpness to this otherwise blunt film. When he faces his first New York judge, a woman who is notorious for hating men, she can’t help but play into his game, and she even takes more to him than to the highly professional Moore. In fact, there doesn’t seem to be a single person who dislikes him, his usually disheveled appearance, or his unorthodox legal methods. Of course, Moore’s character is upset by this, and in unavoidable romantic comedy fashion, it’s painfully obvious how things will end up.
Without enough snappy dialogue, amusing situational comedy, or a female lead who fits well into her role, it doesn’t feel worth it to sit through all of Laws of Attraction. The first appearance of Moore’s character has her looking at a new apartment with her mother (Frances Fisher), and as they discuss how busy working women are the most lonely, Moore speaks with a hint of New York accent. Perhaps she’s been living there her whole life and is fully accustomed to the city and her high-profile job, which would make good sense for her character, especially if Brosnan is supposed to be the fish out of water. But within the next five minutes, Moore is speaking with no accent whatsoever, and like the rest of her performance, it’s as if she’s giving up before she’s even had a chance to get started.
Her character is meant to be very intelligent. In fact, it’s mentioned that she graduated at the top of her class at Yale, and of course she has achieved the same status as one of the most respected lawyers in New York City. Why, then, does she act like such a shallow and hair-brained woman when romance is involved? She finds Brosnan’s character irresistible, and understandably so, and her refusal to accept her true feelings for him might have made for good entertainment had her character (and the actress portraying her) not been so sophisticated. It’s simply too hard to believe that any woman in that situation would remain so stuck up and uncaring for so long, and for no good reason. Especially a Yale graduate, who should know better.
Maybe the better question is why someone like Brosnan’s character would have continued to pursue her so adamantly. And the only answer to that is, because the screenplay said so. The story takes them through a couple of embarrassing nights of drinking, a handful of courtroom arguments, a few trips to Ireland, and even an unplanned marriage between them. And after they’re legally bound, Moore’s character becomes even more selfish and heartless, while Brosnan clearly just wants to be happy with his new bride. Things resolve themselves, but the whole process is more uncomfortable and artificial than it is heartwarming and genuine.
To sum it up, the romantic coupling between Brosnan and Moore in Laws of Attraction is like an arranged marriage. The chemistry is one-sided and all of the characters are at the filmmakers’ whims. How can you believe the love between the main characters when they aren’t in control of themselves? You can’t, and lacking that, you won’t have a worthwhile movie.
-- Andy Zientek (zfilm@earthlink.net)