ALEX & EMMA

By: debbie lynn elias

The publicity tagline reads, “Is it love… or are they just imagining things?”  After suffering through this summer’s latest romantic comedy, “Alex & Emma”, the tagline should read, “Is this actually a Rob Reiner movie…or am I just imagining it?”  Rob Reiner has the distinction of making either first- class, out of the ballpark, Oscar-worthy, mega-money-makers like “This Is Spinal Tap, “When Harry Met Sally,” “The American President”and “A Few Good Men” or duds like “North”, “The Story of Us” and now, “Alex & Emma.”

“Alex & Emma” is the story of Alex Sheldon, an eager young Boston novelist who has spent the past year working on his second novel and working himself into $100,000.00 worth of gambling debt.  The time has come to deliver both.  His publisher wants a finished product and two Cuban loan sharks want their money.  Unfortunately for Alex, he has been suffering from writer’s block for the better part of a year, has only eight words down on paper, his computer has been torched by the loan sharks (obviously pen and paper guys) and he now has thirty days to write the book, get paid, pay the loan sharks and go on with his life.  (Needless to say, if he doesn’t finish the book it could be a toss-up as to who kills him first – his publisher or the loan sharks.)

Without a computer, Alex’s only hope lies in the services of court reporter/stenographer Emma Dinsmore (as he apparently has a severe case of carpal tunnel syndrome or very poor penmanship that precludes him from handwriting the manuscript himself).   Despite her reservations, Emma agrees to “type” the book as Alex dictates.  There’s just one problem (okay, one of many) – every time Alex opens his mouth, Emma has a comment, or two or three, about the character or the plot, questioning the storyline that Alex has just dictated.   The novel is set in 1924 and the film segues back and forth between the past and present with Alex and Emma playing the 1924 characters and the various storylines that develop through Alex’s dictation.  And of course, as the novel’s characters fall in and out of love and love triangles develop, so goes the real life course of Alex and Emma.

Luke Wilson and Kate Hudson star as Alex and Emma and have about as much chemistry as a fizzled out Fourth of July firecracker.  They do, however, have superb comedic timing, most notably in their repartee on plot and character development as well as in their 1924 period pieces where Hudson appears as four different characters, each with a different accent and nationality.  Sadly, Wilson, who as a rule delivers a solid, believable performance with each role he tackles, falls flat here, lacking any real emotion.  Hey, if someone was going to kill me in 30 days, I think there would be some degree of panic and a total lack of free-flowing, perfectly structured and punctuated dictation.  At most, you see an occasional slight glimmer in his eyes as Alex realizes he is falling in love with Emma.  Supporting performances by David Paymer as John Shaw, Adam’s 1924 millionaire rival for the hand of the glamorous and sexy Polina Delacroix, and Sophie Marceau as Polina, are almost stifled.  Paymer who always gives a stand-out performance in a supporting role, seems to be “hanging”, unsure and restrained in the role of Shaw, while Marceau basically just spends the film looking Great Gatsbyesque glamorous.

Touted by director Rob Reiner as a cross between “When Harry Met Sally” and “The Princess Bride” and  based on a real life incident in the life of  Feodor Dostoevsky, “Alex & Emma” doesn’t even come in a close third.  Although “When Harry Met Sally” was basically about the developing life long romance of the title characters, there were distinct and separate relationships with supporting characters that helped establish and build the main characters.  Here, there were none.  Using the main characters to play literary characters in the 1924 cut-aways emulating the emotions or imaginations of the “real characters” failed to supply a much needed counter-balance, dynamic and aid to character development.

Obviously realizing some of the downfalls in the script, writers Jeremy Leven, Adam Scheinman and Andrew Scheinman, together with Reiner, appear to have attempted a poor mans’ version of Meg Ryan’s Sally,  giving Emma the Sallyesque qualities like rapid fire talking when nervous and “everything on the side”, although here we find Emma peeling tomato skins off her tomatoes because not everyone likes tomato skins on the tomatoes.  Kate Hudson doesn’t need to play or be a take-off on anyone.  Even with a poor script and poor story, she still shines.

But all is not lost, the film gets a big lift from the period set decoration by Andi Brittan and period costuming by Shay Cunliffe.   Both capture the essence and feel of 1924 beautifully.

Rob Reiner knows romance.  We saw it with “The American President.”  Rob Reiner knows comedy.  We saw it with “This Is Spinal Tap.”  Rob Reiner knows romantic comedy.  We saw it with “When Harry Met Sally.”  Hopefully, Rob Reiner just suffered a case of writer’s block/director’s block like his character Alex Sheldon with “Alex & Emma.”

Emma, Ylva, Elsa, Eldora and Anna: Kate Hudson
Alex, Adam: Luke Wilson
Polina: Sophie Marceau
John Shaw: David Paymer

Warner Bros. presents a film directed by Rob Reiner. Written by Jeremy Leven. Running time: 96 minutes. Rated PG-13 (for language).