THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, May 9, 1995 TAG: 9505090029
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E9 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MAL VINCENT, MOVIE CRITIC
LENGTH: Medium: 91 lines
AFTER A DECADE or so of cynicism, the movies are trying mightily to get lovey-dovey again. Not long ago, producers, who are always decreeing what we would and wouldn't like, claimed that the public wouldn't buy romantic comedy anymore.
They were wrong, of course.
Meg Ryan's films ``When Harry Met Sally . . . '' and ``Sleepless in Seattle'' broke the ice and heralded the successful return of ``date movies.'' Some failed. ``Only You'' was a bit too-far-fetched and probably deserved to be the flop it became. ``It Could Happen to You,'' though, was a delight and should have done better than it did. The current hit ``While You Were Sleeping'' benefits from a new, fresh heroine, Sandra Bullock.
Ryan, the reigning queen of Hollywood adorability, is back with a new entry, ``French Kiss.'' For the most part, it delivers what audiences want - Meg acting goofy and vulnerable as she seeks the man of her dreams.
``French Kiss'' has a thin plot that works its two leads constantly. It lacks the passion of the title as is fluffy and insubstantial. It would be a peck on the cheek, not a real kiss.
Ryan, with a tousled hair-do and those sky-blue eyes working overtime, plays Kate, a schoolteacher who braves her fear of flying to head for Paris to win her man back. Her straying fiance is Timothy Hutton, a nerd who wears mismatched clothes and has fallen for a leggy French ``goddess.''
On the flight, Kate meets a smarmy French thief with a greasy moustache and a permanent 5 o'clock shadow. He has a funny, quite unbelievable French accent, and specializes in credit-card scams and other petty thievery.
In spite of the fact that he's played, with a good deal of mischief, by Kevin Kline, whatever would she see in him?
He plants a stolen necklace in her purse, and they parade around Paris, the French Riviera and gorgeous French countryside while they fuss and fume at each other. L'amour! In the movies, we don't have to explain it, as long as the chemistry works.
It may depend on your mood the day you see the film, but, outwardly, there isn't that much chemistry between Ryan and Kline. They're both working for laughs - but separately most of the time.
In what comes dangerously close to a repeat of his exaggerated, and quite funny, accent in ``A Fish Called Wanda,'' Kline is a full-fledged clown in the early scenes. At times, he suggests that he might even go as far as Inspector Clouseau in murdering his French bon mots. All too soon, though, he becomes a sensitive guy. He steals to save money for a vineyard where he hopes someday to concoct quality wine - a worthy ambition.
Once again, we pull for Ryan to find happiness. But how often can we see her in the same movie? As winning as she is, Ryan had best not again try a script quite this thin anytime soon.
She doesn't have a scene to match her energetic faking of an orgasm in a restaurant in ``When Harry Met Sally. . . .'' Here she does things like hide behind a palm tree in a restaurant and then fall into the dessert tray.
Hutton, who needs a comeback (it's been a long time since he won an Oscar for ``Ordinary People''), gets little to do. Jean Reno, the memorable gunman in ``The Professional,'' has a bit as a cop.
Lawrence Kasdan, after suffering the biggest financial disaster in movie history with last year's ``Wyatt Earp,'' takes few chances. He apparently has let the two stars go their own way. He often lets scenes run too long. Occasionally, though, he hits on very funny visual jokes.
Kline could have carried the movie if his character had been allowed to be the center of things.
Ryan is still likable and clearly the girl you'd most like to take home for Mom to meet. It's just that they aren't completely at home together. You can't really believe that the teacher would give up everything back home to run off with a French thief who never shaves.
But the film is fun and harmless. It's fluffy. It's light. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by ETIENNE GEORGE, 20th Century Fox
A thief (Kevin Kline) comes to the aid of an American teacher (Meg
Ryan) in Paris in ``French Kiss.''
MOVIE REVIEW
``French Kiss''
Cast: Meg Ryan, Kevin Kline, Timothy Hutton, Jean Reno,
Susan-Anbeh
Director: Lawrence Kasdan
Screenplay: Adam Brooks
Music: James Newton Howard
MPAA rating: PG-13 (humorous sexual references, off-color
language)
Mal's rating: 2 and 1/2 stars
Locations: Chesapeake Square, Greenbrier in Chesapeake; Circle
4, Main Gate in Norfolk; Lynnhaven Mall, Pembroke, Surf-N-Sand in
Virginia Beach
by CNB