Nola

Some of the worst dialogue clunkers in the history of cinema. Utterly unrealistic situations and characters. One must suppose that writer/director Hruska thought he was making a charming movie with aspirations to pay homage to Hollywood comedies of the 40s. Problem is, this movie does not have one funny line in its bloated length. Also, the subject matter does not easily lend itself to breezy comedy, and most certainly does not the way it's treated here. Performances are lackluster with special mention going to James Badge Dale as Ben. Mr. Dale has the charisma of a warm turd and, strangely enough, the acting ability of one.

You get Anol. Which pretty much says it all. (Thanks to TA for pointing this out to me).

Yes, this movie is stupid. But not in the Troll2 funny kind of stupid. It is an hour and a half of pure boredom punctuated by brief episodes of incredulity. Let's get this straight guys. Lawyers in coffee shops do not save the day.

They drink coffee and get stoned when they go home.

Girls who work for escort services, are expected to service their clients. They don't get lucky shots with some crap in a sock.

The average "madam" is not some sweet lady that cares about her workers. She's a user, just like the Johns.

Almost forgot, the dialogue is just horrible.

"Nola" is certainly not a masterpiece. On the other hand, it's not a bad movie.

I watched "Nola" because I am a HUGE Emmy Rossum fan. I think she's brilliant, beautiful and has an outstanding singing voice. In "Nola", Emmy plays an eighteen-year-old named Nola (shocker, right?). Nola moves from an abusive Kansas home to New York City in search of her father and meets some very interesting characters along the way, turning her search for her father into an "adventure".

The first 45 minutes of "Nola" are almost pure romantic comedy. After those first 45 minutes, though, a strange subplot is put into action. The subplot is fairly cheesy and not near as entertaining as I think it was meant to be. But Emmy Rossum's acting saved it. The highlights of the movie were Emmy Rossum's songs. The first was "Street of Dreams" which she sang at the very beginning, and the second was "Don't Break My Heart" which Emmy sang at the end. Her singing voice was amazing and the songs had depth.

On the whole, "Nola" is funny, sweet, and sometimes very much outlandish. I would watch again.

Your humble reviewer is supposed to be knowledgeable about what markets films are made for and what the writers were thinking but I confess this one remains a mystery to me.

Unfortunately it is not meant to be a mystery, it is meant to be a light (very light) romcom.

Rossum pretty much carries the film on her back and if you stick it out to the end (a very big "if") you will get a song you will not forget.

The rest of the film you may try to forget. The tone is bizarre. Very odd.

Keep in mind that one of the key themes here is sex and escort services. Somehow, this is not a compliment, the writers manage to tackle that topic without ever leaving the safety zone of a Lifetime movie or, in some scenes, the Disney Channel.

An amazing feat but a feat no one asked for.

Don't get me wrong, I liked Coyote Ugly, but this one was much better! The story was better, even the actors were better. Also, Emmy Rossum sang her own songs! She even has 2 tracks on the soundtrack. Plus, the screening that I went to was the Arizona premiere, so writer/director Alan Hruska and story consultant/assistant producer Patina Cole were there to do a Q&A after the screening. That was great because it gave more insight into the story and how the movie was made. In conclusion, this is definitely a movie that I would want to see again and again!!