Sometimes hitting the multiplex just isn’t in the cards. That’s when Netflix steps in to provide a movie fix. But how to separate the wheat from the chaff? I’m happy to help; every week I’ll pick a flick from the Netflix Watch Instantly section and see if it’s worth your time. This week? “Love and Other Four Letter Words”.
She’s a busy career woman that has left her past behind so she can blossom in the big city. She’s got everything she’s ever wanted, except love. No, it’s not Sweet Home Alabama, Never Been Kissed or Meet The Browns. This time it’s Love and Other Four Letter Words, and it’s a shadow of the movies that have come before it.
The she in this movie is television talk show host Stormy La Rue (and I’m assuming that’s her porn name as well), who is living the busy life of an upwardly mobile workaholic in Chicago. When her Nana gets sick, she’s on a plane to Alabama — perhaps the same one Reese Witherspoon’s character took — and telling poor Nana that yes, little Stormy won’t be alone, she’s getting married soon. Problem? You guessed it; no man in sight. But renting a guy to step in shouldn’t be a problem. Hey, hasn’t Stormy’s sweet-but-nerdy high school friend that always had a crush on her filled out nicely? Why yes, yes he has.
Chick flicks like these are fun for two reasons: the actors we’ve come to love from other movies just like this, and the comfort of a happy ending after all is said and done. In Love and Other Four Letter Words, there are several actors from Tyler Perry’s troupe, including Tangi Miller, Tasha Smith and Juanita Jennings. The happy ending? Assured. But the getting there is the problem. The lighting and cinematography are sloppy, harsh and glaring one moment, subdued the next. This ends up giving the film the feel of a local-access cable show at times, as if they couldn’t afford a scrim or basic editing software. And though the actors are game enough, the storyline gets thrown off by a lack of consistency with the characters. With proper direction the motivation of the characters would be clearer, but perhaps that’s too much for director Steven Ayromlooi. It could also be that Ayromlooi didn’t want to upset writer/star Tangi Miller, since the two worked together before (on the classic Leprechaun 2: Back 2 tha Hood) and she’s probably how he got this gig. Either way, characters react in ways that are at odds with their development through the movie, and that wears thin after awhile. Like, say, 30 minutes.
The strange sound editing also throws things off; instead of blending the soundtrack into the film, it’s either blasting at you or cut off abruptly when someone starts to speak. Maybe there wasn’t money in the budget for a fade button either.
Most people say that anyone can crank out a romantic comedy nowadays. But Love and Other Four Letter Words shows viewers that making a love story worth watching takes a bit more than a handful of cash and cliches.
Here’s the breakdown:
Would I watch it again?: Nope. All I can focus on are the ways this movie could have been better with a few production tweaks.
Should you see it?: If you love Tyler Perry and need a fix ‘til his next movie comes out, sure. But don’t be surprised if you want to put on some Madea afterwards as a palate cleanser.
Netflix average rating: 3 stars — “Liked It”
My rating: 3 stars — “Liked It” (though if I could give it 2 ½ stars, or if there was a Netflix rating of “Indifferent”, that’s more like it. Will someone please re-vamp the Netflix rating system?)
