Der ganz normale Wahnsinn - Working Mum

This film is about the life of a mother of two young children, who also holds an important position at an investment firm.

"I Don't Know How She Does It" tells the story of a working mother in a fun and lighthearted way. There is so much on her plate, and she struggles to balance between work and home. The film is fluffy and cheerful, augmented by its captions and narrations during still motion. The jokes are funny but a little far in between. The film could also benefit by increasing the emotional portrayal of Kate's lack of bonding with her children. Still, "I Don't Know How She Does It" is a fun film, just don't take it too seriously. Working mothers would connect with this film the most, but other people can still find it enjoyable and fun.

The title says it all, as I do not know how Sarah Jessica Parker has this ability to continue in being the marquee of her films, playing roles that may seem a little bit whiny and neurotic, but gaining and establishing an incredible following which has to be attributed to a certain degree to the very successful Sex and the City television series and movies, despite the latest one being not quite hitting the mark. Still, you can't keep a good woman down especially when she has the knack for snagging roles that allows her to play, well, the usual superwoman whose life is in a constant juggle between work and family.

And in many ways this film has characters that makes it easy for any working adult to identify with, whether one has a family of one's own or not. If life means tackling the various friends and fiends that come our way, and dealing with issues, problems and challenges that get thrown in our direction, then this story, adapted off the novel by Allison Pearson, encompasses just about everything in episodes. There's the best friend and confidante, the rival at work just waiting to pounce on mistakes or steal thunder, snarky moms who cannot figure out why someone wants to be a career woman, an attractive boss to report to and work with, an anal retentive assistant, all rolled into the story of the work life balance.

Sarah Jessica Parker's Kate Reddy seemed to have it all figured out, on the outside at least when others look at her, the perfect formula to keep everything together, although folks on the inside, and by that I mean family members with husband Richard (Greg Kinnear) and kids Emily and Ben (Emily Rayne Lyle and Julius and Theodore Goldberg respectively) disappointment and the lack of quantity time become very evident and frequent, and goes to a certain extent of reminding us of the things that actually matter and the importance of that balance and difficulty to achieve so, because it isn't a zero sum game, but definitely something's gotta give, and the crux of this film is how Kate slowly erodes what should be held dear, for career progress and reputation to upkeep.

Which is not a bad thing, but calls for very discerning time management, and knowing when to call it quits. Director Douglas McGrath weaves a very punchy narrative that relies a fair bit of comedy, even employing things like hair lice and other quite unladylike behaviour to send the message across, be it presenting the challenges Kate faced, or to try and present the narrative in a fairly novel manner with the use of talking heads interviews that makes it become like a mockumentary, even having Kate break the fourth wall and communicate directly with the audience more than once. It also offers keen insights into the modern day career woman, and if you remove gender from the equation, the many issues on display can apply to any working adult with similar responsibilities, where life may mean a constant juggle of roles and the apportioning of one's time against activities.

It's a film about contemporary lifestyle and the relationships built at work and at home, with many social tools used today featuring very much in the film, from email to phone to text messages, which creep into and become part and parcel of communications in life. Then there's the subplot about the perils for the working mom in a jetsetting lifestyle with the temptation that comes in the form of her attractive working partner Jack Abelhammer who comes in the form of Pierce James Bond Brosnan, and that of her relationship with assistant Momo (Olivia Munn) who probably exists in the film to provide that tinge of sarcasm, a person who's high on the IQ but needs plenty of work in the EQ department.

Of course you don't watch this film to look out for solutions on offer, but it may provide suggestions that some you may already know of, but fail to practice or have it successfully implemented because a movie can conveniently lump things together and skip the nitty gritty ugly details. But such is life, and what this film can do is probably a temporal pause from our own predicaments, and to remind ourselves that we're not alone in this struggle to maintain an even keel. I may not be the biggest Sarah Jessica Parker fan around, but I cannot argue the case against this film. Recommended.

This is a well written balanced and realistic look at a high powered working mom's life. There is enough humor to keep it a comedy and enough seriousness to keep in from being silly. Sarah Jessica acts here like Carrie as a mom and she is very likable and charming. I haven't enjoyed her roles in romantic comedies like Failure to Launch and Did You Hear about the Morgans, so it's nice to see her back in form. The supporting cast is well cast. Christina Hendricks as the best friend is lovely and this movie doesn't exploit her figure at all. It shows her face is really captivating and she should get more movie roles. Pierce Brosnan is quite good and suave as a big finance guy. Kinnear doesn't have a very demanding role. He looks younger than before and provides a decent support. Kelsey is good in his few moments as the big boss. The little girl wasn't very cute. Seth Meyers is quite good as the office ass. It's definitely not a long SATC episode. Overall a watchable and very pleasant movie especially for SJP fans and for families with working moms. Makes you appreciate the burdens of a career woman with a family more.

This drivel masquerades as a comedy but offers little more than a misplaced feminist rant. I am sure they expected women to say 'oh it's so true - we DO make lists and we Do multitask!' but please - who exactly was this aimed at - zombie life forms? Maybe they think that women are so tired that they wouldn't notice how cliché-ridden and pathetically hackneyed this offering is? It was not amusing. It was not interesting. It was not original. It did not have a single redeeming quality and I suggest you do not waste your time nor your money on this rubbish.

Indeed I shall waste no more time reviewing it.

Kate(Sarah Jessica Parker), is happily married to her husband(Greg Kinnear), and has two great kids. And she also has a great job. But then her job increases to more hours, better pay, but less hours at home. How will Kate manage this all in one.

Sarah Jessica Parker is incredibly annoying, she just mugs for the camera,a good part of the film, I'll just say she was more amusing in Sex and the City. Greg Kinnear is so bland in his role, not that he was bad, he was just there. Pierce Brosnan is a scene stealer has Parkers partner in the film, he just is more charismatic than anybody else in the film. And Olivia Munn has Parkers assistant, is way funnier than Parker, cause she doesn't act like she ate a lot of sugar to get into her role, like the way Sarah Jessica Parker does.