It's pretty much a lock that if you have Paul Newman in your movie, you're not going to have to worry about his performance - no matter how weak the script is.
In "Where the Money Is," Newman is spectacular. He plays a convicted bank robber put into a nursing home after apparently suffering from a stroke and becoming incapacitated. A nurse (Linda Fiorentino) at the home, however, begins to suspect that Newman's character is actually only faking his illness.
While Newman is stupendous, Fiorentino is only adequate in her role. She tries to play a charismatic character with a rebellious nature, but the script never provides for enough incentive for her to make the radical choices she makes in the movie. She in fact plays her character with a reckless mixture of ditziness and brilliance. Her character doesn't really have any character.
Lots of other problems litter the movie, as well. The aforementioned script is weak not only in structure, but also in dialogue. It's depressing to see talent such as Newman's not used to its potential.
But it's also depressing to see a relatively fresh idea spoiled (warning: reading past this point might ruin some of the surprises in the film).
If you've seen any of the trailers for the film, you've seen the scene where Fiorentino's character pushes Newman's wheelchair-bound character into a river. Newman's character is then seen climbing the ladder of the dock and telling her, "OK, so you're smart."
The most intriguing part of this movie is the question on whether Newman's character is actually incapacitated, or simply faking it. This spoiler makes the first half of the movie - the best half - completely irrelevant.
But this is a problem seen way too often with Hollywood movies. Action movies show the best action sequences (which usually occur at the end of the movie) during their previews. Comedies use all of their best jokes in their previews. If Hollywood could have learned anything from last summer, it was that the best publicity a movie can get is word of mouth. Two of the largest money-makers, "The Sixth Sense" and "The Matrix" made their plots completely unclear during their previews, much to the delight of audiences.
If viewers are lucky enough to go into "Where the Money Is" without seeing the previews (or reading this far into my review) the movie could be interesting for quite awhile, although it still lacks any original thought in the end.
If for no other reason, avoid "Where the Money Is" to show Hollywood where the money should be - in not spoiling films before audiences have an opportunity to see them.
In "Where the Money Is," Newman is spectacular. He plays a convicted bank robber put into a nursing home after apparently suffering from a stroke and becoming incapacitated. A nurse (Linda Fiorentino) at the home, however, begins to suspect that Newman's character is actually only faking his illness.
While Newman is stupendous, Fiorentino is only adequate in her role. She tries to play a charismatic character with a rebellious nature, but the script never provides for enough incentive for her to make the radical choices she makes in the movie. She in fact plays her character with a reckless mixture of ditziness and brilliance. Her character doesn't really have any character.
Lots of other problems litter the movie, as well. The aforementioned script is weak not only in structure, but also in dialogue. It's depressing to see talent such as Newman's not used to its potential.
But it's also depressing to see a relatively fresh idea spoiled (warning: reading past this point might ruin some of the surprises in the film).
If you've seen any of the trailers for the film, you've seen the scene where Fiorentino's character pushes Newman's wheelchair-bound character into a river. Newman's character is then seen climbing the ladder of the dock and telling her, "OK, so you're smart."
The most intriguing part of this movie is the question on whether Newman's character is actually incapacitated, or simply faking it. This spoiler makes the first half of the movie - the best half - completely irrelevant.
But this is a problem seen way too often with Hollywood movies. Action movies show the best action sequences (which usually occur at the end of the movie) during their previews. Comedies use all of their best jokes in their previews. If Hollywood could have learned anything from last summer, it was that the best publicity a movie can get is word of mouth. Two of the largest money-makers, "The Sixth Sense" and "The Matrix" made their plots completely unclear during their previews, much to the delight of audiences.
If viewers are lucky enough to go into "Where the Money Is" without seeing the previews (or reading this far into my review) the movie could be interesting for quite awhile, although it still lacks any original thought in the end.
If for no other reason, avoid "Where the Money Is" to show Hollywood where the money should be - in not spoiling films before audiences have an opportunity to see them.