Film Reviews

Maid in Manhattan

• Rating:
• Director: Wayne Wang.
• Starring: Jennifer Lopez, Ralph Fiennes, Natasha Richardson, Stanley Tucci, Tyler Garcia Posey, Frances Conroy, Frances Conroy, Chris Eigeman, Marissa Matrone, Bob Hoskins.
• Details: US / 110 minutes / (12PG).

Jennifer Lopez, bless her, has apparently based her career on making bad films, but even she must be getting a little tired of it at this stage. Barely four months after Enough (indeed, few movie's titles have been more reflective of their contents), her latest crime against good taste is the rags-to-riches blueprint of Maid in Manhattan. It's a comedy so timidly unassuming that you wonder what inspired producers to bankroll it in the first place. Here, Lopez plays single mom Marisa Ventura, a maid at a swish Manhattan hotel, frequented by Republican senatorial candidate, the WASP-ish Christopher Marshall (Fiennes). When he spots Ventura trying on an expensive dress, Marshall mistakes her for someone important and or rich, and begins courting her. Not willing to own up to her unwitting deception, Marisa responds to his advances but is terrified of losing her job and Marshall's affections should he or the press find out who she really is. Quite aside from the lacklustre stereotypical nature of the screenplay (what a surprise - Latino chambermaids!), the coupling of Fiennes and Lopez is nothing short of bizarre. Mistaking attitude for character, Lopez does a mild riff on her now familiar on screen persona - sassy but vulnerable, in case you were wondering - while Fiennes spends large chunks of the film looking and acting utterly confused. Natasha Richardson does her best to take the material out of the gutter, and the fact that she almost succeeds highlights what an underrated force she is. Lopez, on the otherhand, is all ass and no talent. But you knew that already.

Review by Garreth Murphy