Video Review: 'Mona Lisa Smile'
Roberts Dramedy Predictable, But Worth Checking Out
POSTED: 6:04 p.m. EST March 12, 2004
'Mona Lisa Smile' (PG-13) Reminiscent of the prep-school period dramedies like Robin Williams' "Dead Poets Society" and Kevin Kline's under-appreciated "The Emperor's Club," "Mona Lisa Smile" delivers a lot of scenes that will make you smile. Unfortunately, the film as a whole hardly approaches the level of art that the film uses as for a metaphor for life.
In a role tailor-made in obvious hopes of an Oscar nomination (but didn't deliver the goods), Julia Roberts stars as Katherine Watson, a headstrong art instructor in 1953 who is new to Wellesley College, an institution that encourages the education of its women-only enrollees -- only to expect them to graduate and get married and become housewives.
A free-spirited graduate of Berkeley College, that's a huge problem for Watson, because she sees a lot of potential in her students (which includes Kirsten Dunst, Julia Stiles and Maggie Gyllenhaal). And she might have a shot at turning their predestined paths in a different direction if she can break in the tight inner-circle of traditionalists that surrounds them.
While the acting is mostly above par in "Mona Lisa Smile" (check out a sweetheart of a supporting role for Marcia Gay Harden), the film suffers from conventional plot devices. That's evident from the get-go with the mere existence of Roberts' character, who's first scorned by her students, only to eventually gain their favor. Haven't we been here before?
The theme of the film, however, is worth examining. It's interesting to peer into the whole idea of colleges that "prepared" women to become housewives (it's an amazing reminder of how much times have changed) -- and the people like Roberts' character willing to risk it all to throw convention out the window.
Be sure not to turn off the film before the end credits: Elton John and Bernie Taupin's up-tempo swing tune "The Heart of Every Girl" rolls over some amazing advertisements capturing the so-called idyllic housewife world of the 1950s.
DVD Features: "Art Forum" featurette; "College Then and Now" featurette; "The Heart of Every Girl" music video and more. (Columbia-TriStar Home Video)
TV On DVD: Just in time for the theatrical release of the new "Starsky & Hutch" comes "Starsky & Hutch" Season One DVD set, which contains the pilot episode of the show and all 22 episodes from 1975. Starring Paul Michael Glaser (David Starsky) and David Soul (Ken "Hutch" Hutchison), the DVD set also contains "making of" featurettes about the show and new interviews with Glaser and Soul. The five-disc set also contains a featurette on the "Starsky & Hutch" movie, which is considered a prequel to the television series. (Columbia-TriStar Home Video)
In a role tailor-made in obvious hopes of an Oscar nomination (but didn't deliver the goods), Julia Roberts stars as Katherine Watson, a headstrong art instructor in 1953 who is new to Wellesley College, an institution that encourages the education of its women-only enrollees -- only to expect them to graduate and get married and become housewives.
A free-spirited graduate of Berkeley College, that's a huge problem for Watson, because she sees a lot of potential in her students (which includes Kirsten Dunst, Julia Stiles and Maggie Gyllenhaal). And she might have a shot at turning their predestined paths in a different direction if she can break in the tight inner-circle of traditionalists that surrounds them.
While the acting is mostly above par in "Mona Lisa Smile" (check out a sweetheart of a supporting role for Marcia Gay Harden), the film suffers from conventional plot devices. That's evident from the get-go with the mere existence of Roberts' character, who's first scorned by her students, only to eventually gain their favor. Haven't we been here before?
The theme of the film, however, is worth examining. It's interesting to peer into the whole idea of colleges that "prepared" women to become housewives (it's an amazing reminder of how much times have changed) -- and the people like Roberts' character willing to risk it all to throw convention out the window.
Be sure not to turn off the film before the end credits: Elton John and Bernie Taupin's up-tempo swing tune "The Heart of Every Girl" rolls over some amazing advertisements capturing the so-called idyllic housewife world of the 1950s.
DVD Features: "Art Forum" featurette; "College Then and Now" featurette; "The Heart of Every Girl" music video and more. (Columbia-TriStar Home Video)
TV On DVD: Just in time for the theatrical release of the new "Starsky & Hutch" comes "Starsky & Hutch" Season One DVD set, which contains the pilot episode of the show and all 22 episodes from 1975. Starring Paul Michael Glaser (David Starsky) and David Soul (Ken "Hutch" Hutchison), the DVD set also contains "making of" featurettes about the show and new interviews with Glaser and Soul. The five-disc set also contains a featurette on the "Starsky & Hutch" movie, which is considered a prequel to the television series. (Columbia-TriStar Home Video)
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