Owen (Freddie Prinze Jr.) works in a photo shop but, a Manhattanite, he has aspirations of being a film maker. In fact, a "short" he created has been selected for a Toronto film festival. Meanwhile, he goes reluctantly to a French film with his beautiful fiancé, Lynn (Jamie Lynn Sigler) and hopes to take her with him to Canada. After the movie, the two try to catch the end of a bar band gig where Owen's close friend Ray (Chris Klein) is the drummer. Ray is happy the two showed up but convinces Owen to say good night to Lynn while the two of them extend the evening after the show. It happens. The two males crash a party nearby where Ray can continue to drink for free, as he has a big problem with alcohol. Alas, Owen catches the eye of a beautiful lady and she comes on to him strongly. After some feeble attempts to resist on Owen's part, the two of them leave Ray and go to a separate room to romance. Its obvious that these two men have huge personal problems. Ray arrives late to see his daughter at his ex-wife's apartment and Owen doesn't tell his fiancé anything. Ah, but Lynn finds out in a roundabout fashion and breaks their engagement. Not wanting to head to the festival alone, Owen brings Ray. But, more trouble arrives when Ray cooks up another scheme to get rooms at the Four Seasons Hotel for nothing, posing as the son of Wallace Shawn. Owen doesn't win a prize and the two get booted from their lodgings after a day. Also, every phone call Owen makes to Lynn is unanswered. With tensions high, Owen blames Ray for the wrong turns in his life and they part company as enemies. Owen heads to California to make it in the movie industry while Ray goes back to Manhattan for an uncertain future. Will they remain enemies forever? Will there be a silver lining at the end of their rainbows? This very weak film was written and directed by Frank Whaley, who has had some memorable roles in films (Career Opportunities). His connections likely got the film made, for the script is hardly worthy of a feature film or even an indie. It is meandering and nearly pointless, with two very unlikeable male characters at the center. Its only asset is the two stars, Prinze and Klein, giving their best shots to horrid dialogue while Sigler is enchanting in a small role. Some of the sets in Manhattan are nice, too, while costumes are attractive and the background music is pleasant. One doesn't want to be too hard on a director's first attempts but there is hardly an acceptable reason to seek this film out. As a NYC Serenade, this one is a cheap ditty out of tune.
Review of New York City Serenade
New York City Serenade
(2007)
A cheap ditty, not anywhere near a serenade; the only asset is the two main stars
13 February 2017
Warning: Spoilers