Neun Monate

Hugh Grant is pretty 'watchable' in most films he does. His on-screen presence is pretty much consists of witty lines, snappy articulation and boyish / non-threatening charm - and some element of nerves.

He's got that same appeal in this movie - and with the over-the-top acting of Tom Arnold, the film has great comedic performances. Still though, it lacks a compelling story.

The simple storyline never got interesting: an unmarried couple discovers they have a baby on the way. The soon-to-be father (Grant) seems uncomfortable with idea of becoming a responsible husband and father - leading to problems with the mother (Julianne Moore). Being in presence of a reckless family (headed by Arnold) just seems to make things worst ... and the story progresses from there.

If you're a Grant fan, you'll enjoy his part in the movie. However, get ready to also discover that it isn't enough to save this movie. It's just not that fun to watch.

Samuel Faulkner has it good. He lives a semi-bachelor life but has a steady girlfriend. When she announces she's pregnant he fears the worst and isn't very supportive. Soon she's off but he learns a lesson from his friend Sean and tries to get back with her.

Chris Columbus romantic comedies are never going to be the cutting edge of variety and innovation – but this is just plain old and lame. The story could have been written by a child it is so predicable, with little funny lines – and you know you're in the s**t when it falls back into a 10 minute keystone cops style conclusion. There are two funny scenes – one with Robin Williams and one where a Barney-esque (Arnie) dinosaur gets the live kicked out of it in a toy store. This was made the most interesting bit in the film for me simply because Arnie was played by Charles Martinet – who has done the voice of Super Mario in video games for the past decade or so.

Outside of pop cultures references like these the film relies of coy, sickly sentiment and dumb jokes. Robin Williams' Russian doctor gets a few chuckles but the rest is lame. Grant is not the most versatile actor in the world but here he just plays his floppy haired, blinking fop to death. He even gets to re-do his opening speech from 4 Weddings (but with the language toned down for the American audience). He's annoying from start to finish. Moore deserved so much better and will probably see this as one of her lows on her CV. Arnold is terrible and Cusack is wasted. Jeff Goldblum is the only one is resembles a real person and is good, and Williams is hammy but at least manages to raise a few smiles.

Overall this is terrible. A star looking for a break in America signs up to do a sure-thing (a soapy romantic comedy) with lots of big names around to protect him in his first big US movie. People criticised Grant for being with a whore just after this movie came out – but they missed the fact that, by selling out and buying into clichéd American s**t that panders to the least demanding of audiences, he'd whored himself out just as much as Divine Brown had.

I don't get how some of you people could not like "Nine Months". OK, perhaps some scenes were too cushy and sentimental, but the laugh to running-time ratio is surprisingly high. This may be branded as a chick-flick but there's comedy here for everyone. The film is basically a combination of different styles of wit from the six main stars and the result is surprisingly good.

Hugh Grant does his usual high class, bumbling gentleman thing, Tom Arnold does his annoying best-friend neighbour routine, Jeff Goldblum as the decidedly cynical artist with a skeptical view of everything, Joan Cusack as the kooky ditz, Robin Williams as the inept foreign doctor and Julianne Moore plays it straight. There's also a great mix of verbal and slapstick wit that doesn't go un-noticed (the preying mantis joke is a laugh-riot).

For the most part, "Nine Months" is a welcome change from your usual fluffy, smiley rom-com. I have absolutely no idea why people don't like the movie because I think it's great. My IMDb rating: 7.2/10.

I understand the low ratings, the storyline is not that good, but I really had some moments I could not stop laughing. The actors also do a really great job. And, last of all, I could not get used to Hugh Grant's haircut.

"Nine Months" is a predictable chick flick, where a very happy, content bachelor knocks up his live-in girlfriend, thereby turning his world upside-down. Lessons learned: men who don't want to marry and have children are portrayed as immature, self-absorbed, selfish, and misguided. Carting lots of screaming kids around in a minivan is, apparently, the most fun a man can have in this lifetime. For women, having children is the ultimate achievement and fulfillment of their lives. This is an insulting fairy tale that women will love, because it shows men who don't want marriage and kids as BAD and men who do want marriage and kids as GOOD. Women are always GOOD no matter what their attitude or actions are.