Desperate Wives

I decided to give this one a shot after seeing James Belushi and Denise Richards on the credits. That, and the fact that there was no review for this title on IMDb; it kinda felt like a "virgin" territory to explore.

And I don't regret it, because I ended up liking it. The acting was believable without any of the forced over-the-top or wooden performances that you see in crappy movies where you are constantly reminded that some people are trying to act and the results are painful to watch.

The lead character which plays Sam was natural, the role fit him like a glove and in the end it felt like he pulled it off with style; and the other characters delivered good performances too.

I wouldn't know where to classify this but it certainly isn't a comedy. The story is somewhat original (at least I haven't seen another movie about high-school kids doing escort services for older women) but it doesn't fall into cheap clichés, not a little bit and all the little side stories are neatly weaved into the main one.

It has a sweet-sad tone all through, however, it also has a sort of light feeling of hope to it and the music helps building and keeping that up.

All in all, I didn't end up regretting the time I spent on it (as I do with a lot of movies, lately) so what I can tell you is, give it a try and make up your own mind about it. This isn't your garden-variety blockbuster but I think you'll find it a quite good way to spend one and half hours on a stormy afternoon.

I must start out by saying that I was definitely not in the target audience for this movie, because I gave up about halfway through the movie out of sheer boredom. This movie took forever to get nowhere, and for a comedy it was frightfully devoid of laughs and funny situations.

Admittedly, then the storyline does have the ground for a great comedy, but it just came out as non-appealing and not funny at all. Plus, the core essentials of the movie have been seen in other movies that deal with the same situation.

Despite having some fairly good names to the cast list, then "Cougars Inc." was a dull experience, one that I will never pick up again and attempt to watch with the intend to finish. It should be said that I rarely give up on a movie, so for this one to cause me to get up and stop it halfway through, that pretty much says a lot about the movie. With that said, then I am not saying that the actors or actresses in the movie didn't do good enough jobs, because they did, the movie was just a boring experience.

I am sure if you are a young teen, perhaps around 15 to 18 years old or so, then you might find some amusement in this movie. But for an adult audience, "Cougars Inc." doesn't offer much in the entertainment aspect.

'Cougars Inc.' is about a teenage boy who uses his friends as 'escorts' to older women, who then pay for their 'services.' On the whole, a neat idea which has potential. However, it's executed pretty strangely. First of all, if you see it billed as a 'comedy' then think again. I managed to sn*gger about three times in the ninety minute run-time. I would almost call it a romantic teen drama instead.

However, the main problem is the sheer believability of the situation. On the one hand, I'm sure there are more 'mature' women (or 'cougars' as they're called here) who may be bored with their marriages etc and, with their disposable income, are ready and willing to pay to date younger men. But, in the film, the problem lies with the fact that the 'mature' women are all incredibly attractive, almost to the point of having model looks. Are we seriously to believe that Denise Richards (yes, she may be in her early forties now, but, let's face it, she's still 'Hollywood' quality when it comes to looks) is having problems finding one-night-stands? And, if we're in some parallel universe where that is the case, she chooses to pay young nerdy teenagers for their company.

The central character's friends are portrayed as the 'geek squad.' They're not the fit, sporty, cool 'jocks' of their school, they're the ones who hide away in the computer rooms, playing Dungeons & Dragons. The whole film comes across as some teenage boy's fantasy about him and his mates being seduced by scores of beautiful women (and, they're ALWAYS beautiful - the boys never have to 'perform' for some tired-looking fifty-something with drooping body parts and stretch marks!).

Then, to add final insult, the film strays into the moral compasses of escorting and how it affects 'real' relationships and treats us to a particularly preachy final act. I wanted to like this. If they had kept it more like some sort of daft, zany 'American Pie-esque' type comedy, at least it would have had a few more chuckles. Sadly, it's a film that tries to take on too much and basically fails on all levels.

Like a few of the other reviewers, I thought this might have been one of those films I'd turn off in the first 5 minutes but to my surprise I really enjoyed it and if anything wanted the story to continue. It certainly stands out from the crowd and if you like strong characters then this won't disappoint.

Also interesting to see one the leads from Cold Case in another role, which Kathryn Morris excelled The film is engaging because of the way the main actor speaks to the screen and the 20 or so lead in questions posed. So if you think this is just another light weight, American comedy film, don't be fooled, it's much better than that.

So take a look at it and hope you enjoy it.

K Asher Levin is obviously a guy who thinks about smooth natural dialog, cos this movie is full of it. It seems adlibbed almost and this is an obvious strength for him as a writer and director. He's gone for the realistic vibe on this movie with under produced sets and lighting, taking it to a gritty vibe, and it's pretty damn good for that. He's taken what could have been a terrible Hollywood sleazefest and turned it into an indie edgy piece. There are flaws, that you can overlook with some suspension of disbelief. James Belushi's character is too cool to be anyone's teacher but he delivers it convincingly. The guys are a little too everyman but maybe that's the point, but if they're everyman then the swinging older women were too hot. Ultimately this is watchable and more importantly it shows some real promise for the director/Writer.