Clemency

I fail to see why this movie seems to be regarded as fresh and groundbreaking. The central concept is that the aging process and its impact on women's physical appearance, as well as society's expectations of how women should look as they age, can affect a woman's self-image, and even her self-worth.

Gee, there's a big revelation. Except, not. It seems to me that this idea has been done to death by everyone from filmmakers to sitcom writers to pop psychologists to Oprah.

For a film that alleges to be only 96 minutes long, it is unspeakably slow-paced and boring. I can't think of a movie that made me check my watch more frequently. The main characters, played by Brooke Adams & Lynne Adams, are both prone to long-winded, whiny speeches that seem self-indulgent and pointless, and make the characters nearly thoroughly unlikeable. Like a big, drawn-out, very-special-episode of "Thirtysomething." And oh, yeah, boring.

Also, I cannot imagine why this film is classified as a comedy. I didn't laugh once during the whole movie, and anyone who did needs to get out more. Sometimes, I could spot the strained dialogue or physical hijinks that were probably supposed to be funny, but just made me cringe. The rest of the time, I couldn't even guess where the "comedy" was supposed to be.

The only thing that makes this film unique (besides taking the audience to new heights of boredom--did I mention that it's boring?) is the "mockumentary" conceit, which is annoying at best and confusing at worst. Really, the only good thing I can say about it is that Eva Amurri, who plays Brooke Adams' daughter, is delightful.

As a 34-year-old woman, I am not that far removed from the concerns about aging and appearance that are debated ad nauseam by the main characters in this film. Unfortunately, everything they have to tell us about this subject, women already know.

Honestly, this is one of the worst movies I have *ever* seen. When I rented it, I had been led to expect something simply hilarious, and nothing could be further from the truth. With a very few exceptions, I didn't find anything in this movie even moderately amusing. Just boring, slow-moving, and definitely not funny.

I am not at all a "summer blockbuster" type of movie fan. I am always thrilled to see a movie that breaks away from the norm. However, my summary line has become my own little personal movie-viewing credo--"Just because it's different doesn't mean it's good." I think too often many movie fans and critics are so desperate for something new, they equate unconventionality with excellence. (The very overrated, shockingly dull and unfunny RUSHMORE is a good example of this.) Originality is great, but the main purpose of a movie is still entertainment, and THE NINTH CONFIGURATION is mighty low on that.