One Night at McCool's
May 2002 Reviewed by: Anthony Di Marco Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

When a film’s greatest asset is Andrew Dice Clay, I expect the film to be targeted toward a specific audience. For example, I remember finding Ford Fairlane humorous when I was about nineteen, but I was also a sophomore in college and probably drunk at the time. Nevertheless, I knew what I was getting myself into given the name centered on the marquee. If, however, a film has an all-star cast with the likes of Liv Tyler, John Goodman, and Michael Douglas and Mr. Clay delivers one of his best performances, then I know I’m in trouble.

At the core of One Night at McCool’s sits Jewel, a woman who has mastered the art of getting men to do what she wants. Her dream is to have the perfect home and the best DVD player money can buy (sounds like a keeper to me). Like a chameleon, her persona changes from mother figure to dominatrix to homemaker, respective to three rather pathetic men. And even though the film does present her in a less-than-flattering light, she isn’t necessarily a bad person. To argue that she is would be hypocritical, since all humans use some level of manipulation to get what they want. Where one would use money or social class as a means to maneuver, Jewel uses the age-old instrument of sex.

The script by Stan Seidel has many interesting ideas, but they go nowhere fast. The ensemble cast inhabits characters that are neither interesting nor sympathetic. But the clincher is that I never once believed that these men didn’t have a choice. Making observations about the power women have over a man’s libido is one thing. But building a film on characters as spineless as Randy, Carl, and detective Dehling, or as completely unlikable as Jewel, gives the audience no one to root for. If Harald Zwart and first-time screenwriter Stan Seidel were trying to make a point, they should have developed more compelling characters to deliver it.

One of the few moments where this film did succeed was in the well-shot daydream sequences, which were captured in stunning detail on this DVD. Audio was equally crisp with good vocal intelligibility and good use of surrounds when the visuals called for them. Alas, this is the type of movie where pretty pictures simply can’t make up for the sins of its plot.

That Michael Douglas played producer as well as thespian probably figures into how the production managed to get the cast it did. Judging by the short and scatterbrained documentary they did have a good time shooting the film. Unfortunately my opinion of this film felt flat long before I managed to force myself to sample its anemic list of special features.

It’s possible that I am completely off base in my criticisms. Maybe I just needed to look deeper into the narrative. Look beyond the bad acting and cardboard characters to find it’s true meaning. Maybe Matt Dillon’s character wasn’t as lame as I first thought. Maybe John Goodman wasn’t walking aimlessly though his role. But then again, maybe Mr. Clay will be the next Pacino.

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