This is an oddly likeable film starring two strong comic actors, Mira Sorvino and Lisa Kudrow. Inseparable and sublimely narcissistic at high school, blonde ditzes Romy and Michele are thrown into a panic by the advent of their school reunion. It�s been ten years and they�ve basically gone nowhere. So, they devise a plan of pretending to be wildly chic businesswomen, in order to fool both the bitchy cliques and the predictably successful geeks. Naturally, it all goes wrong, and their friendship is tested.
The success of this film is down to the actors. Kudrow is basically Phoebe (but no complaints there) and with Sorvino she manages to make the characters vain, stupid, shallow, and completely unambitious, and yet they remain desperately endearing. It�s a very unsnobby film, because although we�re invited to laugh at their shortcomings, the eventual message is: if they were happy in the first place being shallow and unsuccessful, why bother pretending to be anything else?
Apart from a not-quite-there surreal dream sequence in the middle of the film, it is very funny. It goes beyond �let�s laugh at the dumb blonde� thanks to that surprisingly sympathetic touch, but in the end, it�s not much else. The bitches are faced down, everyone is happy, you turn off the video and forget all about it. |
