Movie Review: In Her Shoes
I've been very busy this weekend in my hometown of Spokane, WA. One thing I always do when I visit home is call up my grandma (who is pretty with-it for 80 years old) and ask her which movie she wants to go see. Her choice was "In Her Shoes", which at first I was not very thrilled about. I'd seen the previews on TV and it definitely wasn't on my "must see" list.
The first part of the movie was a bit slow - they set up the story in which two sisters (Rose and Maggie) are complete opposites. Rose (Toni Collete) is a lawyer who is a bit "mousy" and slightly overweight and who would rather work than face awkward social situations with men. Maggie (Cameron Diaz), on the other hand, is younger, prettier, cannot hold down a job to save her life, and is a tramp. Maggie ends up living with Rose for a short time (because her step-mom threw her out of the house because of her drunken ways), until she sleeps with Rose's sort-of boyfriend while Rose was away on a trip.
This led to Maggie hopping a train to Florida to look up their mother's mother (the mother had passed away some time ago). Grandma (Shirly McClaine) takes Maggie in and quietly puts up with Maggie's ways until she gets some advice from her elderly friends about how to relate to the younger crowd. She offers to match Maggie's money if she starts working a real job and then (through accident) ends up being Maggie's business partner as personal shoppers for the retirement community in which they live. Meanwhile, Rose does not know where Maggie has gone, decides to quit her job as a lawyer (for obvious reasons) and become a dog walker. She is wooed pretty seriously by one of the lawyers she worked with named Simon. At first, she resists, but then starts to realize what a great guy he is and that she actually has fun with him.
This part of the story is my favorite - watching how some men out there can appreciate a woman for who she is (with all her imperfections). She doesn't need to be a size two blonde bimbo - she can be smart and witty, have crooked teeth, and still be desired by a good man. I loved the part where they were starting to kiss and she turns off the light and he turns it back on, she turns it off, and again, he turns the light back on. That is a part I can relate to all too well because I like to hide in the dark from my own imperfections.
The other part of the story that is really good is getting a glimpse into why Maggie is the way she is - she has been told by people that she is stupid (even by her sister) and it's not hard to see that she is viewed as either a hindrance or an object to be used by most people. It's not until she starts working as a nursing assistant in a skilled nursing facility, that she is "discovered" by one of her patients (a retired college professor) who encourages her to read to him. He takes her under his wing and fosters a sense of pride and accomplishment in Maggie, which transfers to her treating the people around her with respect and caring.
At the end of the movie, Rose and Maggie resolve their differences, Rose gets over herself and finally opens up to her fiance about her dysfunctional family dynamics (whose family is not dysfunctional?), and Grandma even learns to make cosmopolitans and watch Sex and the City.
This movie really has stuck with me - it went straight to my heart. Obviously, I can identify with Rose, but as the story progresses, it's not hard to have some empathy for Maggie and her grandmother. The only person I disliked through the whole movie was the stepmother (who is the uppity sort of person who turns the silverware over at a dinner party to see if the brand is worthy of her). Rose is a girl after my own heart - an ugly duckling who is a swan in the eyes of her fiance who learns to quit hiding herself (and her feelings) in the dark.
Yes, yes - very stereotypical roles, but overall, I'd give this movie a "B" for most women. For men, probably a "C" or "D". And just for Zombieslayer, I'd give this movie a rating of 7.5 dead zombies (because when they are dead, you can have half-zombies).
The first part of the movie was a bit slow - they set up the story in which two sisters (Rose and Maggie) are complete opposites. Rose (Toni Collete) is a lawyer who is a bit "mousy" and slightly overweight and who would rather work than face awkward social situations with men. Maggie (Cameron Diaz), on the other hand, is younger, prettier, cannot hold down a job to save her life, and is a tramp. Maggie ends up living with Rose for a short time (because her step-mom threw her out of the house because of her drunken ways), until she sleeps with Rose's sort-of boyfriend while Rose was away on a trip.
This led to Maggie hopping a train to Florida to look up their mother's mother (the mother had passed away some time ago). Grandma (Shirly McClaine) takes Maggie in and quietly puts up with Maggie's ways until she gets some advice from her elderly friends about how to relate to the younger crowd. She offers to match Maggie's money if she starts working a real job and then (through accident) ends up being Maggie's business partner as personal shoppers for the retirement community in which they live. Meanwhile, Rose does not know where Maggie has gone, decides to quit her job as a lawyer (for obvious reasons) and become a dog walker. She is wooed pretty seriously by one of the lawyers she worked with named Simon. At first, she resists, but then starts to realize what a great guy he is and that she actually has fun with him.
This part of the story is my favorite - watching how some men out there can appreciate a woman for who she is (with all her imperfections). She doesn't need to be a size two blonde bimbo - she can be smart and witty, have crooked teeth, and still be desired by a good man. I loved the part where they were starting to kiss and she turns off the light and he turns it back on, she turns it off, and again, he turns the light back on. That is a part I can relate to all too well because I like to hide in the dark from my own imperfections.
The other part of the story that is really good is getting a glimpse into why Maggie is the way she is - she has been told by people that she is stupid (even by her sister) and it's not hard to see that she is viewed as either a hindrance or an object to be used by most people. It's not until she starts working as a nursing assistant in a skilled nursing facility, that she is "discovered" by one of her patients (a retired college professor) who encourages her to read to him. He takes her under his wing and fosters a sense of pride and accomplishment in Maggie, which transfers to her treating the people around her with respect and caring.
At the end of the movie, Rose and Maggie resolve their differences, Rose gets over herself and finally opens up to her fiance about her dysfunctional family dynamics (whose family is not dysfunctional?), and Grandma even learns to make cosmopolitans and watch Sex and the City.
This movie really has stuck with me - it went straight to my heart. Obviously, I can identify with Rose, but as the story progresses, it's not hard to have some empathy for Maggie and her grandmother. The only person I disliked through the whole movie was the stepmother (who is the uppity sort of person who turns the silverware over at a dinner party to see if the brand is worthy of her). Rose is a girl after my own heart - an ugly duckling who is a swan in the eyes of her fiance who learns to quit hiding herself (and her feelings) in the dark.
Yes, yes - very stereotypical roles, but overall, I'd give this movie a "B" for most women. For men, probably a "C" or "D". And just for Zombieslayer, I'd give this movie a rating of 7.5 dead zombies (because when they are dead, you can have half-zombies).
posted by Notta Wallflower at 8:25 AM
7 Comments:
I actually want to see the movie because I like the author of the book it's based on. I've been reading this author's blog at jenniferweiner.blogspot.com. I relate to her because she was a journalist and she's now got a 2 year old. Unlike me, however, she has published several bestsellers and now has had her book made into a movie. Sigh. But still, she seems like a pretty cool chick. I read "Good in Bed" and thought it was awesome escapist lit. I'll probly hold off on reading "In Her Shoes" until I've seen the movie, to avoid the disappointment that usually ensues when you read the book first.
Storm - Not at all. :-P I hope you get to go see it - I'd be curious to know your opinion. :-)
Tessence - Yeah, I always have that problem. If I read a book first, the movie is never quite as good. :-/ I'll have to check out that other title of hers.
Julia - She did a great job in Muriel's Wedding. I also liked her in About a Boy, although her role was a bit different in that one.
Justice - If you are a manly man, I would not recommend this movie for you. ;-)
Sweet review. Sounds like too much a chick flick for me though, unless Cameron Diaz does a gratuitous nude scene.
I loved the part where they were starting to kiss and she turns off the light and he turns it back on, she turns it off, and again, he turns the light back on.
That's cute because I've been in that situation before. Funny how women don't get that a lot of us guys actually like seeing who we're kissing.
Yeah, but a lot of us don't think we're worth looking at. It takes a special guy to bring us out of that stage!
ZS - You're right - it's not a guy movie. No, Cameron Diaz isn't nude in it, she only shows her hiney several times. TSHS is right - some of us don't think we're worth looking at until someone comes along who actually accepts us for who we are and thinks that we're beautiful. :-)
I finally finished your tag. That one was really unique!
Yay! I'll come by and see it. :-)
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