Coup de foudre et conséquences

This was a fun movie to watch. It is about an American who falls for a Mexican girl. After they are married a lot of humorous situations arise due to their cultural differences. I am a Canadian married to a Portuguese lady so a number of these differences I have experienced first hand. For example, when you meet the "family" it is not just three or four people it is half the town. Also when you sit in the sun all day, some people tend to melt (I do) and others do not. In the movie, I also found her father's line "Presbyterian is not a religion" a nice summary of why the parents didn't think the marriage could work.

The movie has nice scenery of the grand canyon, the hoover dam, the desert and the great grandmother's Mexican "casa". The surround sound is very enjoyable. It includes a great many songs all of which blend in nicely with the movie. The Elvis songs near the end of the movie are quite touching.

Finally the two leads are sensational. Matthew Perry's body language is superb for the kind of light comedy role he plays. He also did the emotional stuff really well. Although not quite certain about his feelings, his heart pulled him head-first into marriage.

Salma is very cute and her tan does her wonders. She also is a good actress and adds a lot to the humor.

I've seen this movie six times in the last year. It is a nice relaxing watch.

'Fools Rush In' is one of my favorite romantic comedies. Though, I know that many will dislike it but I'd take it anyday over any Julia Roberts rom-com. It's sweet without having too much sugar. It's one I have repeatedly watched and never got bored of. Director Andy Tenant deserves credit for putting it all together.

It has the unusual pairing of Matthew Perry and Salma Hayek (which really works). Both share a great chemistry and look good together. While Perry's Alex is a little similar to Chandler Bing (except with a much bigger problem to deal with), the actor knows how to make the audience like him. Hayek as the vibrant, stubborn, mean but adorable Isabel is simply brilliant. The rest of the cast provide adequate support.

The movie is full of light and delightful moments. Though there are certain aspects of culture clash, it is all presented in a humorous manner. Supporting the movie is a wonderful soundtrack, some fine location shots and the funny screenplay itself (which is predictable but doesn't spoil the fun on the way).

I'd seen this movie several times on some of the cable channels and liked it well enough that I went and bought the DVD. Since I received it, I found that the overall theme of the movie is learning to love someone else more than yourself. Yes, there are elements of two cultures colliding (and that's not just the Mexican American culture colliding with the WASPs but also a strong theme of east coast versus west coast) but that simply allows the showcasing of some of the best (and funniest) aspects of each.

In the end, it is the strong performances by Salma Hayek and Matthew Perry that make the movie so special. The scene where Salma is going to go to the bathroom and Matthew leaves (and is brought back by Salma with her underwear down around her knees) is particularly delightful. I laughed so hard at the scene where Matthew is brought home full of cactus and says "Lucy you've got some explaining to do" that my wife came in to see if I had hurt myself.

All in all a very pleasant experience.

Sometimes the mood one is in at a given moment is just right for the film you are about to see. This, obviously, has its setbacks. One night you are just not in the mood, and you write a film off as trash; another night, in a more favourable frame of mind, you lap up a film just loving it. This is of course pre-emptive and subjective: but we are all human. We all have our foibles and manias. So if you forgive me for dismissing out of hand all those delightfully dreadful romantic comedies with Richard Gere or Hugh Grant, whoever the delicious young lady may be playing with them, without forgetting Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, as being pure unadulterated slush, we might meet on level terms and wade in where fools fear to tread.

I just love Salma Hayek.

She is not only superbly gorgeous to look at - those deep Mexican-Lebanese eyes just keep you enchanted throughout - but she is also pretty good at acting. That, together with a nicely-told story with intelligent directing and dialogues which do not fall flat on their face helps make `Fools Rush in' stand out above the rest of the ilk. Firstly the film does not try to be sickly funny. It does not make ireful bile rise into your throat. Perhaps Matthew Perry is not the exact partner for the role, but the chemistry between him and Salma Hayek seems to hold together fairly well. The story is also an indictment into situations which must be arising daily: especially in the United States of America where racial intolerance can become highly murky. A white New-Yorker falls in love with a Mexican girl. Well, if they are all like Salma Hayek, I would not be at all surprised. I would, too. But sociological barriers - in the Mexican family also, with a wonderful interpretation here by Angelina Calderón Torres - produce the logical but hypocritical obstacles which still persist in what for me should be classified as erstwhile societies.

A film I shall see again, which for me must be unique among films called romantic comedies. But there is just that something in the petite thirty-year-old Salma Hayek which lifts me heart and soul into clouds of surrealistic fantasy, that has me fascinated, enchanted.

Therefore any objective commenting on this film is out of the question for me. Tut, tut, my lad.

RELEASED IN 1997 and directed by Andy Tennant, "Fools Rush In" is a romantic dramedy about a casual night of passion between a successful New Yorker (Matthew Perry) and a Mexican immigrant (Salma Hayek), but they learn that love is more than a Vegas marriage & an Elvis impersonator when dealing with conflicting families and traditions.

This is a generally amusing "chick flick" focusing on Gringo/Latino relations, albeit formulaic. Some jokes fall flat, but they're well intended. Perry makes for a likable male protagonist while Salma Hayek is winsome in her physical prime; and Suzanne Snyder in secondary role is nothing to sneeze at. Meanwhile Jon Tenney appears as the protagonist's best friend. The Las Vegas area locations are picturesque.

THE MOVIE RUNS 1 hour, 49 minutes and was shot in Nevada/Arizona (Las Vegas, Henderson, Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and Grand Canyon) and Rancho de las Golondrinas, New Mexico (standing in for central Mexico).

GRADE: B-/C+