Friday, September 16, 2011

 

I Don't Know How She Does It

I Don't Know How She Does It Nobody says it is easy for a woman to have a successful career while carrying on with a normal family life. However, some people think that it is impossible. Worse, they assume that everyone else in this world thinks that it is impossible. Base on that stereotype, a new comedy is made with a catchy title called "I Don't Know How She Does It" (USA 2011 | 89 min.). But, the film turns out to be an awkwardly crafted farce of clichés, lacking of humor and wit. And, I still don't know how she does it.

The "she" in the film's title is a middle aged investment banker Kate (Sarah Jessica Parker). Kate constantly faces the challenge of juggling between high demanding at work and a mom's responsibility for her two young children at home. Luckily, her understanding and supportive husband Richard (Greg Kinnear) is not the one who brings home the bacon. Therefore, while Richard is helping out at home, she can come up some brilliant ideas to compose a mutual fund when traveling, sometimes flirting, with a high profile investment banker Jack (Pierce Brosnan). On top of that, Kate sometimes acts as a mentor and therapist to her straight faced junior assistant Momo (Olivia Munn) about balance of career and family, but never on investment.

Indeed, this sounds like the film is joking. Unfortunately, it is not funny.

If by a remote chance that you have not heard the voiceover from Sarah Jessica Parker in the television series "Sex and the City," you will get a chance to hear her talking exactly the same in this film, but without the insight and sincerity in the TV series. It is a failed attempt when the film mimics the style of the TV series, by letting talking heads express their feelings and thoughts, in case the audience cannot get the point through these character's actions.

Pierce Brosnan and Sarah Jessica Parker in I Don't Know How She Does It

What insults the audience's intelligence even more is when a character makes a (not funny) joke, the film brings another talking head to explain the punch line.

One funny moment actually comes from the conversation between Kate and Jack when they brainstorm "new ideas" about the type of mutual fund they want to create—the fund should be high yield in dividend. Can't you tell the film's writers know nothing about investment?

The truth is, even you know how she does it after the film, you probably won't want to follow her footsteps.

"I Don't Know How She Does It," a Weinstein Company release, opens on Friday, September 16, 2011 at Bay Area theaters.


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