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ONE
NIGHT AT MCCOOL'S
review by Joseph B. Mauceri
REVIEW: ONE NIGHT AT MCCOOL'S, the first feature from Michael Douglas' production company, brings together a talented cast for what could have been a much funnier film. The problem could very well be that this is Harald Zwart's feature directorial debut. He gets the darker elements right, but the film doesn't push the envelope hard enough. The technical stuff is there. In fact, I enjoyed the results he achieved through the use of three different perspectives to introduce the central characters and unfold the plot. It's a nice gimmick to allow the audience to identify with the three different characters. There are some hearty funny moments. I think others could have been funnier if the director was more experienced with comedy. If you've watched a Tom Shadyac film ("Liar, Liar," "The Nutty Professor") you get an appreciation of what a difference a director can make. Liv Tyler is pure cheese cake. Okay she can also act. She has her work cut out for her as she must create three different personas, as view through the eyes of the male leads. Dillon, Goodman and Reiser come across as stereotypical. There's a little room for them to work as each has the opportunity to give their impressions of the situation, but it wasn't consistent. Now Dice Clay as twins is funny as hell. There is enough of an extreme between the two parts that in and of itself makes it funny. The characters are kicked up by giving the tough looking guy a sensitive side, and the nerd looks like a steroid crazed runaway from "Reservoir Dogs." It seems the bad guys here are the most memorable, as Michael Douglas plays a senior hitman. In a tacky hairpiece and bad dentures he looks quite like his dad Kirk. He snatches several scenes as he listens to Randy (Dillon) tell him of his owes, and why he has to kill Jewel for him. The show stopper is the film's final confrontation/shoot out. The sequence plays out like "The Wild Bunch" meets the Village People. There are a few other shootings and "accidental" murders, but they seem more ironic then comical. If there are truly "chick flicks," then ONE NIGHT AT MCCOOL'S is definitely a "guy flick." There are enough boobs, bullets and blood to make you wish they sold beer at the concession stand. It's not too shabby a showing for Douglas' production company, but, again, it could have been improved upon. This is a definitive bargain matinee, or a "must see" video rental.. OFFICIAL
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SYNOPSIS:
Jewel is the devil in a dress with an agenda all her own. One night
she walks into McCool's, an urban watering hole, and forever changes
the lives of three unsuspecting men - a bartender, a lawyer and
a detective. It sounds like the set up for a joke, and ONE NIGHT
AT MCCOOL'S is a black comedy. Poor sweet Jewel is only looking
for a little place she can call her own, even if it belongs to someone
else for now and she has to kill a few people to get it.