Review of Did You Hear About the Morgans? (2009) by John E — 05 Mar 2011

The film Did You Hear About The Morgans? is a routine comedy that comes to life in a new version that makes an attempt to be amusing, something it falls rather short in accomplishing. Despite the array of talent that was cast into the film, there could not have been much hope into turning this so-called comedy into a successful one. The script was bland and routine, the direction was low-key, and the acting was very low-quality, as if the thought of acting for the cast was an afterthought.

The direction of Marc Lawrence (Music and Lyrics) was very low quality especially for this, the romantic comedy genre, being the forte of his filmmaking career. Bringing about a good film with the cast he had could have been simple, but he lacked a certain ability to even guide them to a decent comedy. The part of the director's job to assist the actors in bringing forth their characters in an honest and believable fashion is something that is missing from the actors in this sense, and though he is not to blame completely, Lawrence does not help the situation.

The script, written by Lawrence, was also a low point. His ability to intermix comedy within a dull and predictable script is what makes most of his films at least worth a view. It is because he normally inserts the right amount of comedy into these scripts that it is enjoyable to watch his films, but here he simply just falls flat. There is nothing fresh or exciting about this script, with the only hope of salvation the film has is the comedic relief, which comes in very short supply as most of the jokes are so plain and simple they hardly cause a grin.

The cast consisted of massive potential that just comes up empty. Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City) never seemed to get it going, sticking to what she knows best as the typecast woman who is hurt by a man scenario. It would be nice of her to break this sequence but as she continues to stick to it, I doubt that this will ever change in her career especially since it has lead to so much of her success. Though Hugh Grant (Music and Lyrics) did provide the best role of the film with his comedic charm and satirical one-liners, his role was somewhat flat and emotionless, though most characters in the film were. He continues to be one of the favorites to call upon in the romantic comedy category, but the best days might be behind him and unfortunately it may be time to call upon someone else for these kinds of roles. Sam Elliot (Up In The Air) was his normal rugged self, shutting himself off from the real emotion of his character with the exception of anger, annoyance, and an occasional smile. Mary Steenburgen (The Proposal) was good, though she played along with Elliot's lack of emotional ties to the character, which is unusual for her, so one might suspect she did a good job. On the other hand if she fits into a film's cast with low acting quality, the rebuttal could stand to argue otherwise. The chemistry, even when the story mandated it, was rather rough. The chemistry between the two leads was terrible even when they were supposed to be getting along fine. The supporting cast seemed to get away alright although it was nothing to brag about.

Did You Hear About The Morgans? could have been a lot worse but to hold to the film in high regard is ill advised. The general aspects that combine to make a film were in very poor quality, the most disappointing portion being the acting. This film just seemed to be thrown together quickly and produced to make a quick dollar which is unfortunate because it only hurts the reputations of those that were involved.