Review of Finding Amanda (2008) by Alice S — 13 Jul 2008

I was disappointed. The movie was funny at times and heartbreaking at other times, but it was just WAY too uneven to get involved. There were a couple of speeches that were incredibly poignant and I want to write them down to save forever.

But there were a lot of scenes that just seemed to go nowhere (like, what was the point of THAT?) Matthew Broderick's character, despite being the lead, is completely unsympathetic, which hurts getting engaged in the movie.

The only thing that saved it for me was Brittany Snow. She was GOOOOD. In every nuance you could see the plastic smiling shell she put up and the few times the real her cracked through, your heart just went out to her.

I wish the movie was more about her and much less about Broderick. And the other thing is that the movie doesn't have a Hollywood ending. It ends realistically and therefore, not quite happily. For Amanda's sake, I wish it could be different.

Ultimately, although I appreciate the "reality" of it, the movie left a bitter taste in my mouth.