I watched this movie on cable and missed the opening credits, so I did not have any warning about its stars. To be frank, I did not recognize Gary Oldman and did not realize that the actor was not a little person. (I had no reason to search for slip-ups that would have given the truth away.) It did seem that he was too old to be Matthew McConnaughy's twin brother, but I have suspended much greater disbelief in watching movies.
The acting was very good across the board. Peter Dinklage is a fine actor and his character was amusing, but I was not sure of the point of his performance other than to show that little people are not just happy Munchkins and that little French people are as annoying and anti-American as the full-sized kind.
I was enjoying the movie well enough three-quarters of the way through, but then it fell apart. First, it seemed improbable to me that Steven would not have come to grips long ago with the possibility that he would one day have a dwarf child. Clearly he had grown up among and was comfortable with little people. His behavior after he learned that his fiancée was pregnant seemed out of character, and his abandonment of her seemed extraordinary. If he felt that way about having a dwarf child and preferred adoption, why didn't he get snipped already and eliminate the risk?
Second, the film makers flubbed a funny bit by inattention to detail. It was rather humorous when Kate Beckinsale's mother revealed that her "prejudice" issue was whether the wedding would be Jewish (did we even know Kate's character was Jewish?), but Chad Everett's explanation did not make sense: if the elderly relative were an Orthodox Jew, he would not attend her wedding to a non-Jewish groom even if it were held under a chuppa and a glass were broken.
Third, the ending seemed silly. Why would Kate's character fall for Rolfe in that manner? Because he accepted his dwarf nephew better than his normal brother did (unsurprising as that would be)? Because, unlike his brother the fireman-trainer, he was a creative type (a syndicated columnist) like her (an artist)? He was a pretty bitter fellow, and I did not see any romantic chemistry. Sure, he was a great brother-in-law and little-people resource to have, but is that a reason to get romantically involved with your husband's brother? I would hope Kate's character, being ostensibly Jewish, would take the biblical proscription of marrying siblings a bit more seriously. The suggestive kiss at the end just came out of the blue, and I had the sense that the film makers could not come up with a more plausible or meaningful conclusion.
It was an interesting movie. I just wish it had held together better and concluded in a more meaningful way.
The acting was very good across the board. Peter Dinklage is a fine actor and his character was amusing, but I was not sure of the point of his performance other than to show that little people are not just happy Munchkins and that little French people are as annoying and anti-American as the full-sized kind.
I was enjoying the movie well enough three-quarters of the way through, but then it fell apart. First, it seemed improbable to me that Steven would not have come to grips long ago with the possibility that he would one day have a dwarf child. Clearly he had grown up among and was comfortable with little people. His behavior after he learned that his fiancée was pregnant seemed out of character, and his abandonment of her seemed extraordinary. If he felt that way about having a dwarf child and preferred adoption, why didn't he get snipped already and eliminate the risk?
Second, the film makers flubbed a funny bit by inattention to detail. It was rather humorous when Kate Beckinsale's mother revealed that her "prejudice" issue was whether the wedding would be Jewish (did we even know Kate's character was Jewish?), but Chad Everett's explanation did not make sense: if the elderly relative were an Orthodox Jew, he would not attend her wedding to a non-Jewish groom even if it were held under a chuppa and a glass were broken.
Third, the ending seemed silly. Why would Kate's character fall for Rolfe in that manner? Because he accepted his dwarf nephew better than his normal brother did (unsurprising as that would be)? Because, unlike his brother the fireman-trainer, he was a creative type (a syndicated columnist) like her (an artist)? He was a pretty bitter fellow, and I did not see any romantic chemistry. Sure, he was a great brother-in-law and little-people resource to have, but is that a reason to get romantically involved with your husband's brother? I would hope Kate's character, being ostensibly Jewish, would take the biblical proscription of marrying siblings a bit more seriously. The suggestive kiss at the end just came out of the blue, and I had the sense that the film makers could not come up with a more plausible or meaningful conclusion.
It was an interesting movie. I just wish it had held together better and concluded in a more meaningful way.