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Cullurol Poium ot:
‘Jessica Stein’ gives viewers
| kiss-off of predictable story
■ Modern romantic comedy
‘Kissing Jessica Stein’
has audiences expecting
something ‘fresh’ and ‘original’
‘Kissing Jessica Stein’
★★★☆ t?
By Ryan Bornheimer
for the Emerald
“Kissing Jessica Stein” comes to
Eugene after a successful run in
New York and Los Angeles. Audi
ences seem to have responded to
what could be described as an un
conventional romantic comedy. On
the surface, I guess it is. But if the
movie is as “fresh” and “original”
as some reviewers have said, why
is it so predictable?
Jessica (Jennifer Westfeldt) is sick
of the dating scene. The latest string
of suitors are either cheap, dim-wit
ted or just plain oblivious. She’s
nearly given up hope when she
spots an ad in the personals quoting
her favorite poet. The only thing is,
the ad was placed by a woman. Re
gardless, Jessica sets up a date with
the woman, Helen Cooper (Heather
Juergensen), a funky chick who
runs an art gallery. After a hefty bit
of coaxing, Jessica finally warms up
to the idea of a same-sex relation
ship, even if she’s not in any hurry
to tell her family or friends about it.
Helen, on the other hand, has
more men than she knows what to
do with. When we first meet her,
she’s juggling no fewer than three at
once. Out of bedroom boredom, she
places the ad in hopes of broaden
ing her sexual repertoire.
“It’s the one thing I’ve never
done,” she tells her friends.
But we soon learn that while He
len thinks what she craves is sexual
release, what she really wants is in
timacy. Jessica provides the tender
ness that the men in Helen’s life
can’t. Meanwhile Jessica, who’s
spent her entire adult life talking
herself out of things, learns to cut
loose and go with the flow.
The trouble is, we’ve seen Jessica
in countless romantic comedies:
She’s 30-something; she’s neurotic;
everyone around her is either mar
ried or pregnant; her overbearing
mother (Jovah Feldshuh) is intent
on fixing her up with every single
Jewish man she runs across; and of
course, the clock is ticking.
But it isn’t so much the cliches that
undermine “Stein.” The failure lies
in the way the movie’s conclusion is
so telegraphed and neat. It never
reaches beyond the desire to satisfy
audiences appeased by most Julia
Roberts vehicles. Within a half-hour,
it isn’t difficult to see where things
are headed. And what happens along
the way just isn’t interesting enough
to make up for its predictability.
That isn’t to say the movie isn’t
fun at times. Director Charles Her
man-Wurmfeld shows a steady
hand and a knack for staging the ac
tion of the script written by Juer
gensen and Westfeldt.
“Stein” is a light-hearted take on
a fairly complicated scenario. Yet
there is a deceptively touching mo
ment when Jessica’s mother real
izes the true nature of her daugh
ter’s relationship with Helen and
tenderly offers support. Feldshuh
nails the scene honestly and truth
fully without tripping up the
movie’s farcical tone.
The movie seems to have ar
rived right on time. It’s relevant to
an increasingly complicated sin
gles scene — the logical evolution
of the modern romantic comedy.
And it is better than like-minded
attempts such as “Chasing Amy”
and “Threesome.” But it doesn’t
push the envelope. I’m not talking
about the issues of sexuality. The
movie’s not even about sex. It’s
about friendship and intimacy.
Because the movie starts off
somewhat promisingly, its harm
less but inadequate conclusion is
that much more disappointing. In
the end, “Stein” can’t escape the
trappings of the well-oiled Holly
wood formulas.
“Kissing Jessica Stein” is now
playing at the Bijou Art Cinemas.
Ryan Bornheimer is a freelance
reporter for the Emerald.
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Clinton
continued from page 7
Brendan Relaford, buyer for the
McDonald Theatre, has also seen the
group about 20 times and has been a
fan of the group for as long as he can
remember. He said that George Clin
ton shows are amazing because of the
non-stop barrage of funk.
“It’s one of the best you can see,”
Relaford said. “There’s a guy on
stage in a diaper. Big guys dress as
little girls. They get wacky. ”
UO Cultural Forum National Mu
sic Coordinator Alexis Stevens has
wanted to bring George Clinton to
Eugene since she was hired last year.
“He’s the master of funk, you
know,” she said.
Stevens recently saw Lucinda
Williams at the McDonald Theatre
and is excited to see George Clinton
in that venue.
“It will be a really fun show,” she
said.
Rossoff said that the venue can
seat anywhere from 800 to 1,200
people when the seats are taken out.
“At George Clinton, there will be a
lot of standing room,” Rossoff said.
“We keep working on the room and
the sound, and it keeps getting better. ”
Rossoff said that there are several
definitions of funk. It can be a funky
smell or a funky attitude.
“He (George) likes to think of it as
an attitude, a style. Being funky and
free, free and funky,” Rossoff said.
E-mail reporter Alix Kerl
at alixkerl@dailyemerald.com.
Today’s crossword solution