THE OBJECT OF MY
AFFECTION
RATING: 5 / 10 --> Not good
Review
Date: October 3,
1998
Director:
Nicolas
Hytner
Writer:
Wendy
Wasserstein (from a Stephen McCauley novel)
Producer:
Laurence Mark
Actors:
Jennifer
Aniston as Nina Borowski
Paul Rudd as George Hanson
Timothy Daly as Dr. Robert Joley
Nigel Hawthorne as Rodney Fraser
Genre:
Comedy
Year of Release: 1998
Another
"Jennifer-Aniston-cast-as-the-beautiful-girl-with-no-luck-in-relationships"
movie attempts to add a little variety onto the proverbial menu,
by slapping a gay lead as her man of choice, while serving the
consequences of their relationship as the main course.
PLOT:
Lovely, independent woman does not want her boyfriend to move in
with her, but does request a gay friend of hers to do the same.
Her relationship with the gay man blossoms into a true
friendship, as her actual relationship with her boyfriend begins
to crumble. When faced with a life-altering decision, she must
decide who she really loves, who really loves her back, and how
these decisions will affect their future.
CRITIQUE:
Would-be comedy actually delivers very little in the chuckle
department, runs way too long, musters up a weak ending, and
offers nothing substantially original or thought-provoking to the
audience. This film was actually quite dramatic at points, and
within that context, delivered very little substance to back
itself up. The funnier moments were lacking, the characters
seemed pieced together, and the ending just seemed to
politically-agree with anyone who might care (except for an
audience looking to be entertained, that is.)
CHASING AMY (7.5/10) is the Kevin Smith film that bookmarked the
idea of a heterosexual falling head over heels for a homosexual,
but that film made sure that we understood where each character
was coming from, mixed the whole fling within various real
circumstances, and delivered many funny moments and hip dialogue.
Having said that, I also didn't care for AMY's ending, but that's
because I didn't find Banky's decision realistic. This movie, on
the other hand, seemed very cliché, unoriginal, and quite
boring.
Many of Nina's (Aniston) decisions in the film seem self-centered
and unexplained, and left us wondering why she was acting the way
that she was. Also, I never really bought into her
"love" for her gay roommate, and didn't appreciate the
zillions of shots of them dancing together, to make this point
(Oh, I get it. If they're dancing together, that MUST be love!!).
All in all, this film is so-so in its narrative, so-so in the
acting department, but boring over its entire close to two-hour
running course. Nigel Hawthorne was the only standout in the cast
as the older, wiser, and more sensitive soul.
Unless you are in this exact type of situation in your own life,
do not see this film. And even if you are in the same type of
scenario, you will still not be entertained by this film, but may
take away some questions of your own. Either way, do yourself a
favor and see Kevin Smith's CHASING AMY instead. A way superior
movie, with better characters, better dialogue, and a much more
entertaining story-line. You might even want to see MY BEST
FRIEND'S WEDDING (7.5/10) for a more mainstream solution.
Little Known Facts about this film and its stars:
Nigel
Hawthorne is presently
one of the few openly gay men actors working in Hollywood.
Jennifer
Aniston's real name is
Jennifer Anistonopoulos. She was brought up in Greece and New
York City. Her father, John Aniston, has been playing
"Victor Kiriakis" on the soap opera "Days of our
Lives" since 1985. The late Telly Savalas, famous as TV's "Kojak" (Who
loves ya, baby?), is her godfather. Jennifer received $2,000,000
to star in 1997's PICTURE PERFECT. She also played Ferris
Bueller's sister in the ill-fated TV version of the classic pic,
and co-starred with director Quentin Tarantino in "Steven Spielberg's Director's Chair" CD-ROM
game.
Timothy
Daly is the brother of
Tyne
Daly, famous for
playing Lacey in TV's "Cagney & Lacey". His film
debut was in Barry Levinson's DINER (7.5/10) opposite fellow
movie-virgins Paul Reiser and Ellen Barkin.
(c) 1998 Berge Garabedian
Movie Reviews by Berge Garabedian