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 Enjoy a ‘Date’ with fluff A Review By Beth E. Concepción The romantic comedy “Win a Date with Tad Hamilton” has arrived just in time to get hearts aflutter for Valentine’s Day — if not for your own sweetheart, then certainly for Josh Duhamel and Topher Grace. Duhamel and I go back a long way — back to when I acted with him on “All My Children.” He played the part of Leo and I was … OK, I was a waitress (only an extra, but I did have a few lines). So I feel like I know him, and I’ve been so proud to watch his career blossom from the soaps to “Las Vegas” in prime time and now the silver screen. As for Topher Grace of “That 70’s Show,” unlike fellow child/teenage star Frankie Muniz, he has matured into a fine-looking young man. And it is nice to see the lovely Kate Bosworth — she of the two-different-color eyes — becoming Hollywood’s “It” girl. Sorry if there is a shallow looks-oriented theme here, but there is a reason: “Win a Date with Tad Hamilton” is all apple-cheeked goodness, panache and style with no substance. I mean, the movie also stars Nathan Lane and Sean Hayes, so you know there is plenty of surface flamboyance. Like most romantic comedies, there are obstacles for two people to overcome to find true love. Pete (Grace), a West Virginia Piggly Wiggly manager, is desperately in love with Rosalee, one of the clerks and his best friend (why a manager is allowed to become so friendly with his coworker is never explained). Despite the fact that he has never professed his love for her, he plans to ask her to go to Richmond with him when he moves to attend college. However, Rosalee has entered a “Win a Date with Tad Hamilton” contest, won it, and managed to charm Hamilton (Duhamel), a spoiled movie star, while on the date. He is so smitten that he travels to West Virginia to change his life and hope that her “goodness rubs off on him.” You can see where this is going. A love triangle and tension ensue. There are some serious flaws with the plot here and the way the characters are written. Screenwriter Victor Levin, who wrote for “Mad About You,” treats the movie like a sitcom — glossing over important information to get to the joke and the resolution. Many of these areas are common in the romantic comedy genre, sadly. For instance, Rosalee is so duped throughout the movie, but wakes up to smell the coffee at a crucial moment. Duhamel seems so smarmy at first, then not so much, then back to smarmy again (perhaps that’s because director Robert Luketic of “Legally Blonde” fame uses him as a main character to set the scene, then lets him drift into the background as simply a foil for Pete and the romantic build-up). Perhaps most annoying is the use of typical movie conventions. For example, one character catches up to another, even though the first person left hours before the second. I hate that. Anyway, like a soufflé that looks so lovely in the oven then wilts when it is overcooked, “Win a Date with Tad Hamilton” sinks under its own sugary weight. The movie is a good way to spend a Sunday afternoon — just don’t look for deeper meaning. |
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