Alright readers? Better late than never, here’s my blog post on 1996 screwball rom-com The Truth About Cats and Dogs– henceforth to be written as ‘The Truth…’
Here’s the thing, as I alluded to in my midweek tease post for this film, the reviews written of it back when it came out were quite complimentary. And with good reason- for the second time on this bad-film blog, I’ve picked up a half decent film by accident. My methods are not flawless, I basically go with my gut, and I actually quite enjoy the fact that you can’t be 100% sure. It makes something of a game of choosing my next film. Returning to The Truth though, it is a fairly enjoyable rom-com; a riff on the Cyrano De Bergerac tale of mistaken identity- itself a screwball/ sitcom trope for many a year. The concept in this film is that Brian (Ben Chaplin) falls in love with radio host/ veterinarian Dr Abby Barnes (Jeneane Garofalo), listening to her show and talking to her on the phone. But whenever they arrange to meet in person, Abby’s self-consciousness leads her to send her neighbour Noelle (Uma Thurman) in her place. Within the fiction of the film, Abby/ Garofalo is the smart but ‘unattractive’ character and Noelle/ Thurman is the gorgeous but ‘dumb’ character. To the films credit, the two women are fleshed out to a greater degree than that description would suggest as the film develops, and they get to be more than just those archetypes. However, in a similar vein to Reece Witherspoon in Hot Pursuit, I find myself watching this and wondering- who in their right mind thinks Jeneane Garofalo is unattractive? These things are objective of course, and I really do feel that everyone has a beauty to them*, but even if we ignore that and work within the confines of mainstream, Hollywood attractiveness, Garofalo is still very pretty. So what gives? Then again I suppose the alternative is casting someone who is not what the culture considers ‘attractive’ and then expose them to the insults and self-loathing that Garofalo’s character feels- and that would hardly be better. SO I dunno what to say? It’s a problem with no easy solution. Perhaps Hollywood and the world at large just need to stop obsessing about whether it’s female leads (whether we mean the actresses or the characters) fit some imaginary mould.
Anyway, the two women both fall for Brian and a web of emotions and heartache ensue. The truth doesn’t come out until late in the film, and when it does Brian is left angry and hurt. But Abby comes clean and wins him over as he really did love her- he cared for Noelle too, but the real substance of his feeling was directed toward the conversation and connection he shared with Abby, rather than Noelle’s good looks. Noelle learns and grows from the experience, and chooses her friendship with Abby over chasing Brian, which was pleasing to see as a viewer- she had gained in Abby a best friend throughout the story, and that was as valuable to her as a man’s affection, which is a refreshing change from the norm.
The three leads play there parts well, with Garofalo bringing her wit to the fore as Abby, and Thurman bringing a remarkable vulnerability to Noelle- though she is beautiful and frequently told it, the abusive relationship she’s in means Noelle’s self-regard is just as low as Abby’s- which I’ve never seen her asked to do before. Chaplin as Brian is good, giving him a kind of wistful yearning that I think most can relate to, the only real drawback being that the character is written a little thinly.
The film has some genuinely sweet moments and a few genuine laughs. Not all of the jokes land, but even the one’s that don’t are told with a kind of dry wit which means they don’t fall so hard. The only real complaint I have is that it feels like Brian spends more time with Noelle than with Abby, and her being the one he was truly falling for all along doesn’t quite feel true to what we see.
Nevertheless the film all hangs together pretty well, and certainly isn’t a ‘bad’ film by any means. Clearly the aggressively kitsch font of the title and almost non-existent marketing present on the DVD sleeve led me to believe this was a forgotten dud. In truth, it’s pretty good. It’s a little aged and unpolished and it doesn’t say or do anything particularly profound or groundbreaking, and the moment when Brian monologues about how it doesn’t matter what Abby looks like is a bit on the nose, but its a nice, passable film. I could see a nineties couple- like a normal couple but with backwards baseball caps and mad-baggy jeans, also there’s ska-punk music in the background- sitting down and watching it on a lazy afternoon and that being just fine.
Choosing a star rating for this one is tough, I’m torn between 2 stars and 3. It’s not as good as Ronin, but it’s better than Hard Rain and a little better than Hot Pursuit. But I think its still a two-er. Nope, changed my mind. It’s three.
3 stars!: ***
All right, so that’s that! Join me in a few days for a tease for one of the true holy grails of bad flix… I can’t wait.
-Tom
*Yeah all right I’m a sap.
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