THE OTHER WOMAN
US, 2014, 109 minutes, Colour.
Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann, Nikolai Coster- Waldau, Don Johnson, Kate Upton.
Directed by Nick Cassavetes.
Well, we know what we think and feel when we hear about that kind of woman. This time it is Cameron Diaz, playing Carly, a sophisticated and well-healed lawyer. But, she is not quite as bad as we might initially suspect.
Somebody used the phrase ‘deserving victim’, a nicely precise description. Here it refers to businessman, Mark (Nikolai Coster- Waldau), whom we initially see romancing Carly. Everything seems wonderful, Mark genial and cheerful, Carly wondering whether this might be the real thing – and experiencing wry comments from her secretary,. And then suddenly, the audience sees him in bed – with his wife, Kate (Leslie Man). Mark is not nice, a two-timing philanderer.
Then Carly, believing that he has plumbing problems at home, turns up in her overalls with tools to help, only to encounter Kate. In several films, especially those directed by her real-life husband, Judd upper tail, Leslie Mann has been playing 40-ish wives with some kind of problems, often with the touch of hysteria. This time, with cause, she has more than hysteria.
Once upon a time in 1996, there was a very funny comedy, The First Wives Club, with Goldie Hawn, Diane Keaton, Bette Midler – and another group of philanderers. The film showed how the wives got together against their respective unfaithful husbands and became judges and jury to find ways of retribution. The Other Woman is not quite in the league of the 1996 film, but it has its interesting characters, vengeance and retribution situations (with Mark suffering quite a number of indignities but holding out as long as possible in his deceptions). And by 2014, dialogue and vengeance is more racy, raucous and raunchy than in 1996.
And just when it was a collaboration between wife and girlfriend, they discover Mark with yet another rather younger and beautiful woman (Kate Upton). She is immediately on side with the two women and they begin their work as three fateful furies.
As mentioned, Leslie Man is adept at this kind of role, her hysterics more than a little irritating at times – though one can understand how she feels. For 20 years, Cameron Diaz has shown versatility in her roles, from comedy to high drama. In this film she shows what a good sport she is, and how good she is at slapstick and physical comedy, having to do a fair amount of this in her quest. .
The film is enjoyable in its way, especially if you feel like sharing the vengeance on this current deserving victim, quite an amount of comedy and moralising, but not particularly memorable.
1. The title, audience expectations? Marital triangles? Revelations?
2. Affluent America, law firms, technology and programming? Restaurants and resorts? A glossy film?
3. The musical score, capitalising on songs and themes from the past, e.g. Mission Impossible theme…
4. The introduction to Carly and Mark, in love, living in luxury, her hopes, Carly and her age, past boyfriends, her secretary and her wry advice, the discussions? After all the happy situations, Mark’s excuse with the plumbing, her putting on her overalls, getting the tools, going to the door? Meeting catered the door, her fallback and smashing the vase, discovering the truth?
5. Mark, his age, his work, sexual relationships, seemingly happy with Carly? Waking up and the audience seeing him in bed with his wife? The audience knowing before Carly? His doubletalk, his excuses and explanations, his playing the field? His reactions and lies?
6. Kate, Mark’s wife, family, giving up her career from Mark, her many ideas and his exploiting them, her love him, his treatment of her? Her knowledge of
the truth, her hysterics? Going to visit Carly and her office?
7. Carly, Cameron Diaz and the physical humour, the jokes?
8. Kate, her weeping, her outbursts, erratic, having a cup of coffee with Carly, growing more dependent on her, the phone calls, wanting advice, Carly at meetings and her being called out? The interactions between the two?
9. Kate’s home, her anger, attitude towards Carly but being with her?
10. Plots and plans, putting them into action, raucous and racy, raunchy, the extended diarrhoea sequence? The effect on market?
11. Mark and his being a ‘deserving victim’, the pranks, the revenge?
12. Kate’s brother, the house, decorator, Carly taking an interest in him? The visits to the house?
13. Carly’s father, his life, to forces, advice to his daughter, an old roué, probably like Mark in his early life?
14. Mark at the beach with Amber, the women and their envy, disclosing Mark’s behaviour to her, her joining the plot, revenge?
15. Mark’s firm, socials and Kate going, the CEO, working with Mark, belief in him? Mark and his cooking the books? Carly and Kate, following him to the Bahamas, going to the bank, signatures, making Mark bankrupt, the vengeance? His reaction, desperation?
16. The CEO, acknowledging Kate’s ideas, getting her to work for him, her successful career?
17. Everyone happy, Carly and her relationship with Kate’s brother, Kate and her job, amber and her teaming up with Carly’s father – and Carly refusing to call her mother?
