I was looking forward to Drop Dead Gorgeous, because it seemed like the kind of funny, teen movie I usually like. Boy, was I wrong! It's a mockumentary, a fake documentary, but that did just about nothing for the film, it in fact made it even more tedious because they thought they could throw in extraneous, boring tidbits and that it would be amusing. It reminded me of Waiting for Guffman, a really great mockumentary with Parker Posey, except this one totally wasn't funny.
The setting is Mount Rose, Minnesota, and the teenagers are competing in a teen beauty pagaent. Denise Richards plays with rich, obnoxious girl everyone hates with her fake smile and attitude. Kirsten Dunst winningly plays Amber Atkins, whose mom is a drunk and who wants to emulate Diane Sawyer. But even the good performances can't save this film. I had to force myself to watch it through to the end, when I just didn't care who won the pagaent or what would happen next. The reason it's called "Drop Dead Gorgeous" is because pagaent contestants start dying in the days leading up to the pagaent, but instead of invoking a sense of mystery and having me want to learn who was killing them, I just felt totally nonplussed. For instance, Kirstie Alley plays the mom of Becky Ann Leeman (Denise Richards), who is in charge of running the pagaent and wants her daughter to win at all costs. But the overbearing, interfering stage mother has already been done a million times, and the whole farcical aspect of this movie was just overdone.
I will say the acting was very good, and there were a few funny gags with Amber's mom, who is a total drunk and who ends up with a claw hand and a beer can attached to it after a fire. Also Iris Clark, who we know and love as Frau Farbissina in Austin Powers, turned in a good performance. But all the great acting couldn't save this script.
The humor here misses its mark repeatedly - I could tell I was supposed to be laughing, but the jokes repeatedly fell flat. This movie was predictable and felt like I'd already seen it; it would have been better as a one episode TV sitcom rather than a long, drawn out movie. This could have been funnier; the beauty pagaent circuit is ripe for satire, but Drop Dead Gorgeous just didn't do anything for me. I'm not surprised this movie quickly left the theaters and went to video. If you're looking for a funny movie, try Waiting For Guffman.
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.