Review of Broken English: Three Songs by Marianne Faithfull (1979) by Kimberly B — 15 Nov 2007

Just because you employ an indie princess (Parker Posey), use subdued colors and vaguely edgy camera work, and incorporate foreign actors and Paris, does not mean that you have made a creative, arty, or original film. Putting your cliches and platitudes in the mouths of people who can speak them with a French accent does not mean that their "wisdom" rises above that of Grey's Anatomy.

What it means is that you have just made "Broken English," a run-of-the-mill chick flick, but more pretentious than most because it thinks it's something deeper and better.

This film has its moments, and given that it makes some effort to be original or different (transparent though that effort might be), I gave it two stars instead of one. I also must admit to a few small chuckles and a tear or two at an obvious tear-jerky moment involving a psychic and a reference to the lead character's dead father. But I'm an easy mark when it comes to sappy stuff, and it still fails to make this a good movie.

Eh. Don't waste your time.