Happy Birthday

Story is kind of meh but Tony Goldwyn makes it worth the watch. He brings depth and emotion that draws you in and helps you make it to the end.

Thoroughly enjoyed watching this movie as the older woman I am...Though I think Sharon Stone is 60 now and was playing a woman the age of 46 to start out with - a stretch, unless of course YOU ARE THE BEAUTIFUL, TALENTED, FUNNY SHARON STONE!

Honestly, the movement of being older, unmarried and close to her mother was an interesting plot in itself. The fact she was "off the grid" as a woman to some degree lent fun and interest to the movie, especially as she slowly but surely was able to resurrect her life and succeed financially. She pulled it off very nicely in my opinion. I'm no "spring chick" either, but I saw the "chapters" of her mid-life for what they were; spliced with humor between her originality if not funkiness and her relationships with her best friend, her mother (also a bit of a diva) and the initially "stuffed shirt" lawyer who thawed out very well with little effort along the way.

Sick to death of the cheap, mundane plots that are merely violent; oversexed and repetitious. Now THAT'S a REAL bore! This sunny picture gave me what I needed and wanted out of this woman's life: A JOURNEY, humor, tenacity, renewal and loving relationships, her Mom, her best friend, her guy, because frankly, that really is? WHAT IT IS ALL ABOUT. Kudos Ms. Walters and all for making a fun, E N T E R T A I N I N G movie...For that is SUPPOSE to be? Much of what Hollywood is about - entertainment! Y'all "hit the mark" here.

All I Wish is clearly a Sharon Stone production. It's Sharon all the way and that's not a bad thing at all. She produced this so you know that her heart, if not her pocketbook is into this. She plays Senna a woman of '47', is what she says in the film, and she's a bit of a bad girl still, having fun with younger men and doing doobies with her younger best friend.

In pops Tony Goldwyn and she falls for the guy, but to me it's clear that he is miscast. I was thinking that if say, Burt Reynolds were the guy there would be much more to go on. Goldwyn's character just isn't attuned to Senna.

The script is clearly not quite there in terms of drama, jump cutting here and there... and although it goes year by year, with every birthday Senna has, the thread is lost somehow. The romance a tad derivative in the end, leaving the players too much on screen time.

The film is too long. Sharon Stone is very good, and one wishes her more screen time in future.

6.1 Out Of 10

The chemistry between Sharon Stone and Tony Goldwyn works pretty well here, but I'm wondering, as other reviewers have mentioned, why first time writer and director Susan Walter chose to initially present Stone as a 46-year-old? Since Goldwyn is soon to be 58 in real life just two years her junior (as Stone is 60) , wouldn't it have been even more real and effective to start out presenting Stone's character Senna as a 56-year-old woman, who ages per the film's main premise. She is still so vivacious and beautiful that, at least in my mind, this would have enhanced the film even more.

Overall, I thought parts of this movie were charming and effective while other parts fell flat and were just not believable. Also, the characters were too surfacy for my tastes and never really developed fully. So, a mixed bag for me here and only a fair rating.

I read somewhere that the screenplay for this movie was written with a woman in her mid-twenties in mind for the lead role, and Stone was considered for the role of the mother. Stone made the argument that the story would be more interesting with a more mature woman (her) as the lead. I don't know if it's more interesting, but that certainly explains why her character is so immature and why she is best friends with a young woman almost half her age, and two times more wisdom.

There should have been some extensive re-writing to make this story more believable, and Stone's character less irritating. Come on girl, surely you know this stuff by now!

I was very impressed with the actor who played her love interest - I loved his natural energy and intelligence.