'Serious Moonlight' review

Lunacy is on full display in this serious mess of a comedy

By Alexis L. Loinaz

Posted November 23, 2009

Metromix

That whole "bond of marriage" thing takes on a whole new meaning in this screwball comedy about high-powered lawyer Louise (Meg Ryan), who—after catching her husband Ian (Timothy Hutton) cheating—decides to hold him hostage by tying him to a chair. And then a toilet (really). She's hoping she can force him into falling in love with her again, but when his much-younger mistress (Kristen Bell) shows up, along with some unwanted house guests, nothing quite goes as Louise had planned. Or does it?

The buzz: "Serious Moonlight" marks a bittersweet beginning, and a sad end.  It's the first directorial effort of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" actress Cheryl Hines but also was the penultimate script written by the late Adrienne Shelly ("Waitress"), who was murdered in 2006.

The verdict: Can anything be more torturous than getting tied to a chair by your vengeful ex-wife? Just try watching this unbearable mess of a film. Ryan is all histrionics as the scorned wife, overacting with pitiful desperation and uncorking every one of her comedy tics—the fidgety mannerisms, hee-hee chuckles and wide-eyed pluckiness that have come to define her fading charm. They're the same antics she's used since her "Sleepless in Seattle" glory days, only now they probably qualify for AARP membership. Hutton isn't much help as the captive husband, screaming his way through the film as he attempts to reason with his wife. Hines seems to be standing by ineptly, like a clueless mother watching her kids run amok while wondering, "What the hell is going on here?" You'll wonder the same thing if you valiantly try to plod through this movie.

Did you know: Hines co-starred with Shelly in "Waitress," which Shelly also wrote and directed. It was Shelly's husband who suggested to Hines that she direct "Serious Moonlight" after his wife has passed.