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The Next Best ThingRating:
Release Date: 12 March, 2002 Retail Price: $19.99 OUR Price: $17.99 You SAVE: $2.00! Cast: Complete Cast (17 total) |
The Next Best Thing Reviews
Complicating a complicated relationship with needless complications
"The Next Best Thing" asks the question: What happens if a woman gets drunk and has sex with her best friend who happens to be a gay guy, becomes pregnant, has the baby, lives together with the best friend to raise the kid, years later meets somebody she wants to marry except this could mean taking the kid to the other side of the country, and the woman and the best friend go to court to fight for custody of the kid? Actually, the plot of this 2000 film is more complicated than that, but you get the main idea. The key issue of the film purports to be whether a gay man can be considered a good father to a son, which is something of a strawman argument because there are plenty of examples in the movies and the real world that establishes blood and biology mean little without love and affection when it comes to parenting. Perhaps because that idea is self-evident, "The Next Best Thing" comes up with a twist that serves to up the ante and to give Abbie and Robert ample reason to forget they are best friends.
Madonna plays Abbie Reynolds and Rupert Everett is Robert Whittaker, and it is not surprising that their casting is spot-on since he brought her the script (i.e., it is easy to believe that Madonna's best friend is a gay guy and we already know from "My Best Friend's Wedding" that Rupert Everett, who should have been nominated for an Oscar for that performance, is the best gay guy to have as a best friend). She teaches yoga and he is a gardener, and when we first meet them she is in the middle of being abandoned by her boyfriend (Michael Vartan). As her best friend, Robert keeps Abbie's spirits up, which involves the consumption of spirits, and the next thing they know it is the morning after and she is pregnant. She wants to have the baby and he wants to be a father, so they decided to move in together and not worry about being married. Six years later everything is fine in their strange home, Sam (Malcolm Stumpf) is well-adjusted despite his insistence on reading books upside down, and then Ben Cooper (Benjamin Bratt, who once dated Julia Roberts, so his credentials as a boyfriend are impeccable too) walks into her yoga studio, asks her for a date, and knocks on the door of the aforementioned strange home.
Robert is unsettled by the relationship between Abbie and Ben from the start, so when they announce they are getting married he freaks. The tragedy here is that despite being a sympathetic figure, Robert's fatal flaw here is that he blinks first. Abbie and Ben are not dictating what is going to happen, they are trying to figure out how to make things worse. They are choices to be made and before they can even be discussed let alone decided, Robert decides he has no choice. Ironically, although this is not the case at the start, he ends up creating the very world he fears. Ultimately the problem is that at the end of this film when the weight of legal issues and human relationships becomes oppressive, the screenplay by Tom Ropelewski ("Look Who's Talking Now") offers a resolution that is little more than a cinematic deus ex machina. We want a "happy" ending, we get a happy ending. But that happy ending is not earned given what has gone on before. This is a shame because of the talent involved and because the idea of having to choose between your lover and your best friend is rather compelling.
This Madonna Movie Had Potential but...
She keeps on trying doesn't she, our Mads, like the trooper she is. No matter how many times the critics trash her. Honestly, this movie had a lot of potential, with an interesting story line that tackled a kind of a modern day re-definition of family units and the moral dilemmas and choices involved. With its very worthy supporting cast it could have really gone somewhere but just failed to get there.
Madonna god bless you, I truly wish you could read this because I have two bits of stern advice which I'm sure many others would agree with, to help your (flailing) acting career, if it's not too late. Firstly, get some major voice coaching! Your delivery of dialogue is so unbelievably stilted and wooden at times. It's like you've just learnt the script. And what is up with this phoney pseudo half British half American accent you put on? Was that supposed to be part of your character development or research?. Even though her gay best friend 'Robert' is British, the audience would assume 'Abbie' is just an American living in LA. Besides which, it just sounded so fake. I mean we know you've become a bit of an 'Anglo-Phile' now that you're married to a pom (Australian slang for 'English person'), but you don't have to make it part of every character you play now do you? Concentrate on your acting craft before you start with the specialty accents luv. Meryl streep you aint. Secondly, if you want us to believe in Madonna the actress you've got to leave out Madonna the pop star just for a moment, and quit with the mindless marketing of your pop image, just for the sake of selling more records. My god woman, why does nearly everyone of your movies have to feature your music in the soundtrack somewhere? That scene early on in the film, where you all sing American Pie, at the gay friend's lover's funeral, was just sooo embarrassingly contrived and unnecessary. And quite frankly, fond as I am mostly of your music, your recorded version of 'American Pie' was very weak. Just lifeless.
I know I am being a bit harsh but someone really needs to tell you these things, or rather you really need to hear them,'cause I have actually been a fan of yours from the beginning. Despite your money hungry commercialism, you're an amazing artist and woman in so many ways. I see the potential in your performances often and you have an incredible presence on stage and screen that cannot be denied. But when it comes to the craft of acting a lot more subtlety and discipline is required and you need to learn a bit of humility darling, come down to earth.
Now, as for the redeeming features of this movie, and there are some. I would love Rupert Everett in anything he does. He's so cleverly sardonic and witty in that classy British way. Unfortunately though he is sold rather short here due to a poor script and mediocre direction, but I still enjoyed his performance. I must say I did feel awfully sorry for Robert near the end. He must have felt, intentionally or not, tricked and used by Abbie in a way. I mean she really should have taken responsibilty to ensure who the father was initially, don't you think?. Benjamin Bratt is most easy on the eye and a welcome hetero-sexual addition. Also, I loved the colourful 'Sante Fe' style design and setting. As well as Madonna 'hippyish yoga teacher' chic, (though the yoga thing is also somewhat contrived, no doubt Madonna's influence?) Lastly, there are moments (yes some) when Madonna's acting and character are believable. I always find her the most convincing in her character's more casual, fun moments. Which makes me think she is better suited to lighter comedic roles like earlier on in her career. The kid who plays Sam is quite natural and cute. In reality though that poor child would be left feeling so torn and confused after all that had occurred. He's faced with the prospect of three fathers (or at least father roles) in his life. Overall I quite enjoyed the first part, but really lost interest when the 'same old, same old' court room battle scene came around. This movie isn't a total waste of time and it's always interesting to see what 'Queen Madonna' will come up with next.
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