Starstruck

Starstruck is an always engaging, endearingly awkward, and ultimately quite funny screwball nineties comedy masquerading as a much darker movie than it is capable of being. Jamie Kennedy, fresh off of Scream, does a respectable job as the anti-leading man, George Gordon, due to his amusingly overconfident portrayal of the character, which, to be fair, is ill-conceived and lacks depth. As characters go, it is Loren Dean who is given the most to work with. He chews the scenery as washed-up and strung-out actor Kyle Carey, the second lead and facilitator of the, for better AND worse, simplistic plot. Fortunately, the cast is damn good, all acting harmoniously with a satirical edge, and the leads have natural comic timing and chemistry. Additionally, the third act, which plays like a Martin McDonagh crime caper involving the stealing of Faye Dunaway's dog, is, albeit forced, a highlight of hilarious proportions. Overall, there is an amateurish air to the proceedings, but chances are, if you are a nineties brat with a rude sense of humor, you will, at the very least, get a kick out of Starstruck.