Don't Do It

This movie was made in the spirit of Friends meets Reality Bites. But unfortunately, it misses the mark. I know, the early nineties was filled with tons of talky indy comedies about couples breaking up and making up and some of them are better than others. Well, this is not one of the better ones. It is just too cliché for its own good. It was a shame to take such an interesting and attractive cast and just waste their talents on the horrible drivel that tried to pass for dialogue. The direction was sloppy, the pace was like a snail, and the film just kind of fell apart. I got the feeling that at least one cast member did this movie as a favor for one of his friends in the business, while another wanted to get her feet wet in the film industry in hopes of moving on to bigger or better things. You know what they say about good intentions......

A cast comprised of three romantically interwoven couples, with an additional pair who spend a good portion of this film discussing their failed relationships, deals hopelessly with a jumbled script and lacklustre direction, eventually sinking beneath the force of hollow purpose. Some of the players, notably Sarah Trigger, Sheryl Lee, and Esai Morales, produced some crackle for their dialogue, but this studentish production softened the effect. This type of scenario, involving cleverly coincidental connections among the cast, is more commonplace today than when this work was released (1994); in this instance, however, all chance of freshness was broken down by weak architectonics.

Don't worry about any spoilers from me, I like providing what I honestly felt after watching the movie. Obviously, not every body on planet Earth is a fan of Heather Graham and I myself cannot say that I truly am, but I actually enjoyed this ditty of a movie and found the performances from all the actors throughout the film quite entertaining and very truthful. I think the last time I saw her in a movie was Boogie nights. Can you guess my age? Ha ha ha! Anyways, I highly recommend this movie if you simply need a nice Friday evening with your favorite person and you simply want to be entertained with a nice cozy flick to stimulate the senses that won't leave you hanging in dumb land.

Suzanna (Heather Graham) has begun to ask her boyfriend, Dodger (James Le Gros) for a semi-commitment. Yet, Dodger is very reluctant to commit to anything, as he is still rather hung up on his old girlfriend, Alicia. Therefore, although S and D do move in together, domestic bliss is elusive. Meanwhile, Alicia has moved on to a gentleman named Robert, a musician and her commitment is getting deeper. She has just discovered she is pregnant and doesn't know how to break the news. Two girl hungry males (Balthazar Getty and Robert/Alexis Arquette) cruise the streets and talk about their past relationships. Finally, a handsome gentleman, Charles (Esai Morales) spies a beautiful blonde, Michelle (Sheryl Lee) watching him shoot pool. He shows off, winning a match which brings down the wrath of his opponent. As the defeated one rushes off to bring his co-horts back to pound Charles, C and M get to know each other and like what they find. But, Charles was once involved with Suzanna and Michelle with Robert. IT'S COMPLICATED FOLKS! BUT, NO ONE REALLY CARES. This lame musical chairs romcom has one thing going for it; an attractive cast. Yet, even they can't muster much life into crazy lines and situations, with big boring spaces in between. Ok, maybe the scenery in LA is nice, too, at times, and the costumes are fetching. But, here 90 minutes seems like five hours. This viewer likes many genres and styles yet there is nothing to say for this one except: DON'T VIEW IT.

This movie was on late night t.v. tonight, and I was so unimpressed with it that I had to come here and find out the title so I would never make the mistake of renting it. When I found out that the title was Don't Do It! It suddenly made it all worth while. The cast is deceiving. There are multiple names that you might associate with movies of integrity, but don't be fooled. I have never seen Heather Graham give a more melodramatic and unconvincing performance in my life, and that includes Dream a Little Dream. It is mind boggling that a movie can be so dry and unrealized. The premise is actually potentially very good, but it seemed that no one's heart was in it at all. Perhaps this is because the dialogue was poorly written, the actors were apathetic, and the director was satisfied with performances that were more vacant than an empty hotel. Oh well, if you come across this one, look no further than the title on the box. Unless, of course, you are a film maker and you want an advanced course of what not to do. That was what kept me watching, and boy do I ever feel enlightened.