Movie review: Brosnan, Moore break romantic 'Laws'

New Line Cinema

New Line Cinema

Moore and Brosnan (top) square off in court. Moore and Brosnan (above) let loose a karaoke jam when they are not busy hating each other.

By Jeff Au Spafford
On-line Forty-Niner

The common saying goes 'all's fair in love and war,' and a classic example of this love-hate relationship makes it to the big screen. This Friday, "Laws of Attraction" hits theaters nationwide. From the producers of "The Wedding Planner," "Legally Blonde" and "Under the Tuscan Sun," this movie includes the usual chick-flick ingredients: a bit of romance, a bit of comedy, and a pair of attractive leads. From director Peter Howitt, "Laws of Attraction" reminds us that we find love in the most unexpected places.

Eccentric divorce lawyer Audrey Miller (Julianne Moore) wins every court case with ease, until opposing council Daniel Rafferty (Pierce Brosnan) enters the room. Rough but composed in demeanor, Rafferty defeats her without blinking an eye. Angered and insulted, Miller instantly dislikes him for any little reason she can muster. Audrey's youthful mother, Sarah (Frances Fisher), encourages her daughter to date the attractive attorney. However, Audrey decides to counter her hostility with an unexpected dose of sincerity for Daniel. He offers to take her to dinner, and she hesitantly agrees.

He orders a strange alcoholic mixture with goat nuts for them; she challenges him to take shots with her. The next morning, she wakes up in his bed. Audrey regrets her actions, and Daniel rubs it in her face by stealing her underwear and conspicuously pulling it out of his pocket to show her during court. She vows never to deal with him again.

A rock star divorce case brings Daniel and Audrey together again. The rock star, Thorne Jamison (Michael Sheen) and his wife, Serena (Parker Posey) battle for their undoubtedly beautiful castle on the green hills of Ireland. The judge sends Daniel and Audrey to Ireland to sort out the estate's affairs. A beer race, a few shots, and a jig or two later, we find our two leads in bed -- again. This time, however, they discover that they are married. She is panic-stricken, and he is simply hung over. They readily agree to carry though with their marriage as a façade to avoid any damages to their careers. He moves in to the guest room, and they start to get along quite well. Then, Daniel comes across private information about her client that could help him win his case. He betrays her, and Audrey demands a divorce.

"Laws of Attraction," like so many other chick flicks, plays solely on the emotions of the audience. This movie takes us on a bumpy and uncomfortable rollercoaster ride of emotions.

The film is incredibly predictable, although a few minor twists may cause you to arch your eyebrows with slight amusement. Pierce Brosnan's acting is most likely the only factor from saving his terrible attempt at an American accent. Brosnan unconsciously slips in and out between accents, leaving you strangely confused to what country he comes from. For the ladies, however, he sheds his clothing plenty of times, you will forget his inability to adapt to a steady accent.

Julianne Moore, radiant as ever, plays her quirky, stickler-to-the-rule, character quite fairly. In her dialogues, sadly, we lose a lot of the quips and humor. Again, we can blame the writers or the actor for this problem. We are aware of this love-hate chemistry between them from the start, yet it takes almost the entire film for Moore's character to even contemplate the idea of romance. This can get rather tedious after awhile, so expect two different reactions as you sit for the hour and a half: your jaw will either drop to an aching point from the extremely cheesy dialogues or you will feel a slight lump in your throat and possible tears welling up in your eyes.

Unlike many romantic comedies, Moore's character definitely holds more power in this 'star-crossed' lover scenario. This definitely gives the film a bit more authenticity and originality. There are far worse chick flicks occupying the shelves of Blockbuster or filtering at the local theater, but there are several films that exceed the norm of 'boy gets girl and boy loses girl.' Optimistically speaking, this film just barely makes the cut.