With Sex and Death 101, Daniel Waters does for the romantic comedy genre what he did for the teen genre in Heathers. A convention twisting and near-reinvention. The film starts with a very high-concept idea, which could have easily been used as the basis for the next Adam Sandler production at the studios. Not that there's anything wrong with that...actually, if it's Sandler we're talking about, there's always plenty wrong. So let's say Ben Stiller/Owen Wilson instead. Waters starts off the film with a fairly traditional set-up of his concept, but then quickly takes it off on a variety of unexpected paths. The roads less traveled. You might anticipate and I guess this qualifies for a SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!! that the Simon Baker character falls in love with one of the ladies on his list midway through, but what happens to that true love is off-the-charts unpredictable. There are lots of similar expectation-defying moments throughout, and they're often laugh-out-loud funny.
The choice to cast Simon Baker, rather than the popular comedian of the week, was also a wise one. Baker certainly has comedic chops, but he feels considerably straighter and is more of a dramatic actor in the part than, say, Owen Wilson. Although Baker hardly looks like every man, he does add an everyman quality to the performance which grounds it and makes Baker more of a straight man to the insanity happening around him.
I've read a few reviews which criticize the film for mixing a number of tones and genre elements. It generally annoys me when critics take this easy, lazy route to slag a film, particularly one as daring as this. In this case, any mixing is clearly a stylistic/storytelling choice and not a mistake. If you want things to play out exactly as you're comfortable and familiar with in every film, just watch your favorite DVD's over and over.
My prediction is that the film will have a decent theatrical run and be HUGE in the ancillary markets. Expect this to run on cable until your hair turns gray, Office Space-style. But get out to theaters and see it if you can there. A film like this will play best with a large audience.
The choice to cast Simon Baker, rather than the popular comedian of the week, was also a wise one. Baker certainly has comedic chops, but he feels considerably straighter and is more of a dramatic actor in the part than, say, Owen Wilson. Although Baker hardly looks like every man, he does add an everyman quality to the performance which grounds it and makes Baker more of a straight man to the insanity happening around him.
I've read a few reviews which criticize the film for mixing a number of tones and genre elements. It generally annoys me when critics take this easy, lazy route to slag a film, particularly one as daring as this. In this case, any mixing is clearly a stylistic/storytelling choice and not a mistake. If you want things to play out exactly as you're comfortable and familiar with in every film, just watch your favorite DVD's over and over.
My prediction is that the film will have a decent theatrical run and be HUGE in the ancillary markets. Expect this to run on cable until your hair turns gray, Office Space-style. But get out to theaters and see it if you can there. A film like this will play best with a large audience.