Yea I didn't like it at first either,didn't hate it either.Being it was a Coen Bros. film I bought it the day it came out and was dissapointed.But after watching it again I apreciate it more and more.I mean for a romantic comedy it's almost great,I'd much rather watch this than say RUNAWAY BRIDE or FORCES OF NATURE.It's not like it doesen't resemble the other Coen films at all,ya know?It definatly has some of their elements.
I've heard that the film was originally supposed to be the Gere/Roberts follow-up to PRETTY WOMAN, it seemed that the movie was a go and someone payed a good amount of cash for the script,but then something happened,either RB came along and everyone thought that was better or someone decided they were unsatisfied with the script, but it got put away and they made RB instead(same principals to both films really,just switched around quite a bit).So Imagine ended up with it I guess,and since the script was sold for such a good amount of cash, they wanted to get it filmed with or without Gere/Roberts.The story itself certainly has problems so Grazer probably called in the Coens because he is a smart man and thought their tone could benifit the dark material.He made a good move in doing that, along the way in the proccess of re-writing it the Coens probably wanted to challenge themselves by filming something "commercial",themselves.
I don't love the movie like I do most of their work but it's ok enough for some laughs.I know it dissapointed Coen fans quite a bit,but it really isn't so bad, it's not like they made something like GIGLI or ALEXANDER, if you see it again it's likely you'll feel the same way,I think.
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kevon45uk
19 years ago
I would agree with most of this. As a Coen Bros movie it stinks, but as a Hollywood romcom it's not bad. Clooney is great in it as is his friend. And there are plenty of Coen style elements. Wheezy Joe for one. And what about the old partner in his tomb/den? The last half hour has a couple of good plot twists but on the whole, by the Coen standard, the script is a bit clunky. The worst thing is the complete lack of chemistry between Clooney and Zeta-Jones. I mean she's not too bad an actress in it but it seems evident to me she gets off on older men (look at how naturally she flirts with Billy Bob Thornton) and Clooney's acting only becomes forced when he is expected to be passionate towards her. Both me and my wife noted this at the same time so it must be true!
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jellyb8711
19 years ago
I don't think that anyone is guilty of kidnapping the Coen Brothers. I think that this picture shows their style and humour perfectly. Although this film appears to be "lovey" and "syruppy" there are enough dark, comical moments for this film to be classified as a very different romantic comedy. The Coen brothers are great at taking a genre and putting a different spin on it. For example, some people may see Fargo as a thriller, however it is not just this. It is a comical and truthful insite into characters from northern USA.
With Intolerable Cruelty they have taken something not very original-a standard romcom, and made it their own. From the opening scene of this film you can see the Coenesque style leap off the screen.
The Coen brothers have not been taken anywhere, they are just trying a genre we have not seen them try before. And good for them- risk is one of the greatest gifts a filmmaker should have.
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