Playing Mona Lisa

I'm familiar with Marni Freedman's work, and so anticipated "Playing Mona Lisa". The end product does not compare to what Ms. Freedman is capable of, so that is a disappointment. I'm familiar with her writing for both stage and film and she has an uncanny ear for dialogue that is simultaneously funny, real and heart-breaking. Look for her on future projects. She is truly gifted.

I used to run a video store and this movie rarely got rented. It came on cable this afternoon and I didn't have anything else to do. I found the beginning of the film slow and rather predictable, but, as it got further into the story, I actually found myself hanging on the story, curious as to what could POSSIBLY happen next. I now find myself wondering why it never got rented in the store, because this was REALLY a good movie. I keep guessing if it was a romantic movie trying to be funny or a comedy trying to be romantic. The blend of both is what I actually enjoyed most about the film.

I have only seen one other movies with Alicia Witt, but I think I'm going to be looking for more of her. Elliott Gould and Marlo Thomas are a nice blend as her parents, too.

1st watched 4/21/2001 - 7 out of 10(Dir-Matthew Huffman): Well-written and played out girl flick that is very similar to the very popular TV series "Ally McBeal" in it's theme. A young girl trying to find her man is part of the movie, but it's also about her competing piano talent and how she shuffles her romantics wants or needs with her God-given talent. At times the movie seems confused about the direction it's going which is really not a problem because in real life we're never sure what direction everything is taking. A wide mixture of varied talents are involved in this picture from young(Alicia Witt) to old(Elliot Gould - who actually does one of his best jobs in a hard role as the mixed-up father. Funny, touching, and leaving us a good message as well in the end.

Claire (Witt) is having trouble getting her concert piano career on track thanks to a semi-functional family, romantic woes, and kookie friends. "Playing Mona Lisa" is a formula sitcom quality flick full of cliche characters with just enough of a creative edge to keep me from thumbing the fast-forward button. There's little new here and nothing to get excited about. However, "Playing Mona Lisa" might be worth a look for the couch potato surfing for chick flix. (C)

You really can't say that you "had fun" with a movie that often, but this movie actually has a feeling to it. She's scared to do something so she counts on others to help, and we have no idea if she gets what she wanted or not, and that's how i saw feeling with it. The acting is fun also, Alicia Witt is such a great talent I just can't believe she's not a superstar yet. I know and so do other people that there are a lot of other people that are labeled "SUPERSTARS" that really "SUPER-SUCK", and Alicia Witt is not one of them.