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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Take a deep breath, relax - and enjoy!, December 7, 2005
Have you ever bought at the stock market when everybody told you to sell - and won? That's what happened to me with this film. After buying almost all of John Schlesinger's films, I hesistated before ordering this one - in view of all that criticism. But then I assumed that - 1) Schlesinger cannot suddenly make a bad film after making so many excellent ones, and - 2) if so many bad things are said about a film it must somehow be good. Luckily, I was right this time.
Perhaps much of all that criticism springs from unjustified expectations. Let me try to put two points right: First: this is not a film about Madonna, or by Madonna. She is just an actress here - and a good one, just right for the part. Schlesinger does not present her as a singer or a sex symbol - but as a person. Secondly: Nobody has made a promise that this will be an in-depth, politically correct exploration of gay life. This is just a film - and an entertaining one. There is no law in the land that says a gay person cannot be a times a trifle ridiculous or sentimental, like other persons.
Therefore I recommend you follow the advice Madonna gives in her part as a Yoga teacher: Take a deep breath and relax - just enjoy this as another very good Schlesinger film - a real work of art.
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Pretty bad, September 1, 2000
By A Customer
So... I certainly respect everyone's right to have their own opinion, but it boggles my mind how so many of the reviewers seemed to love this film! It was pretty darned bad. While Madonna's "I'm british, no I'm not" accent was somewhat entertaining, her character's complete personality shift 2/3 of the way through made no sense and totally pushed the rest of this already mediocre film downhill. If you think this plot was a good idea, but you want to experience *some* entertainment from it, go rent "The Object Of My Affection."
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14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Total bust in all directions, October 11, 2002
I had some respect for Madonna before I saw this. But -- no more! If they had set out to make a movie with three characters -- a quintessential "today's woman, a gay man, and a stereotypical stock-character arrogant, self-centered jerk of a "straight" man, then trying to make them equal by making everybody look bad, they could have hardly done a better job than with this film! No heroes or heroines here -- everybody just double-crosses everybody. If they had tried to make it into a zany comdedy after the manner of A FISH CALLED WANDA or the more slapstick parts of MR. DEEDS, they might have had some success. But as is, THE NEXT BEST THING tries to be a serious movie without any real redeeming value. The line that stands out most in my memory is when Madonna's character expresses disappointment in her gay friend by saying, "As a gay man, I expected better from you." So much for not putting people "on pedestals" and so much for any thought that equality really means equality! What COULD this be the next best thing to? Yeast infections maybe?
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