Nurse Betty

Pros: excellent performances, sharp script, good direction
Cons: violence might be a bit much for someone expecting "just" a comedy.

The lives we lead are usually not the lives we wish we led. In a world so filled with cruelty and disillusion, we search daily for an escape from our own realities. Some of us turn to religion, some to sports, others to drugs. And some - whether they...

Pros: Excellet cast. Original idea for a plot.
Cons: A few very violent scenes that will turn some people off.

I recently rented Nurse Betty on DVD. This is one of the most original movies I have ever seen. It contains some of the funniest scenes I have seen in a long time, but it also contains a few scenes that are violent. So much so that those few...

Pros: Renee Zellweger, Morgan Freeman, Chris Rock
Cons: Clear reminders of other films in story

I will begin my review with the following statement: Nurse Betty is funnier than any film I saw in the theaters all summer. It's the sort of film that showcases the comic side of Renee Zellweger that her previous film, Me, Myself, &...

Pros: A first rate cast of fine performers.
Cons: Neil LaBute needs to stick to tortured dramas.

I've been very busy on the set of Flying Down To Reno, the musical remake of Airport '75 over the last few days. Principal photography on the big departure number set in the airport lounge and my rousing tap finale have wrapped. We're now...

Pros: Excellent cast, clever dark humor, and some welcome satire.
Cons: Overall tone may leave a bad taste in your mouth.

Nurse Betty is a change of pace for director Neil LaBute. His previous directorial efforts, In the Company of Men and Your Friends and Neighbors, seemed to revel in caustic misery, while his latest film is a decidedly lighter affair....

Pros: The actors--especially Zellweger--are at their finest hour; the directing is crisp and precise; the writing is razor sharp
Cons: Aaron Eckhart as a sleazeball husband is hard to take in large doses

Walking out of Nurse Betty, two thoughts bubbled in my brain:

Finally! Renee Zellweger gets her long-deserved moment in the spotlight.

and

At last! Director Neil LaBute delivers a film which...

Pros: Zellweger induces sympathy...
Cons: but the rest of the film produces nausea.

A little over a week ago I had offered some movie critiquing tips in another writing. The point of my advice was to let other writers know that it is sometimes best just to let all Hell break loose in your writing. I offered an example of how to describe...

Pros: Freeman and Zellweger are very good.
Cons: Film winds up being not as original as it thinks it is.

The set up for the films premise is quite brutal and gruesome and sensitive viewers should stay clear of the film. Betty (Renee Zellweger), is married to a womanizing jerk of a Used Car Lot owner husband named Del (Aaron Eckhart). Del runs a used car...

Pros: outstanding acting performances; brilliant lighthearted story; many funny moments.
Cons: The story becomes a bit unbelievable towards the end; overly violent and vulgar.

Critics like me tend to complain about comedies when they use humor and situations similar to those of a sitcom. I've always wondered what would happen if someone made an entire movie in that style of comedy and "Nurse Betty" appears to be the answer. ...

Pros: Intelligent script-- well developed characters and elements work together well, Acting by Aellweger and Freeman, Original and unpredictable, Very humorous.
Cons: Dark humor will not appeal to everyone

Now that the summer film season is over, we can now expect to see some Oscar contenders and films that are made for more adult tastes. Such is the case for Nurse Betty although I expect that there will be some critics who won’t take kindly...

Pros: Great ensemble cast, plenty of memorable moments
Cons: Predictable plot, not as dark as you'd expect

If you’re expecting the same brutal, disturbing humor from Nurse Betty as in Neil LaBute’s first two films, In the Company of Men and Your Friends and Neighbors, you’re in for a disappointment. And if you’re expecting a mainstream...

Pros: Freeman and Kinnear are their usual entertaining selves. Welcome back Crispin Glover.
Cons: Anything and everything not spoken or acted out by Glover, Freeman or Kinnear.

This review needs to begin with a message to Hollywood. The term "black comedy" does not mean a movie with Chris Rock doing weird stuff with his eyebrows and saying f*ck over and over.

"Nurse Betty" is being advertised as...

Pros: Strong acting by the four leads
Cons: A gruesome scene that could easily have been left out

Nurse Betty is one of those movies you're either going to love or hate. I doubt there will be much in the way of lukewarm reaction to this one.

Me? I liked it...a lot. That's not to say there weren't missteps or room for improvement, but...

Pros: Fantastic characters, Really funny writing, Great acting
Cons: Some consider the few violent scenes very bad

Finally, a summer movie worth the time and effort to go see it. When I went into Nurse Betty, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I had heard some good buzz about it but I didn’t know enough about the movie to have an idea of whether I’d like it or not.
...

Pros: Solid performances from the four principals
Cons: Absurd premise, erratic tone, distracting violence

A movie that desperately wants to be "different" from the normal Hollywood comedy, Nurse Betty left me feeling slightly worse than I did before her visit.

I sat down expecting the typically strong performances from proven pros...