OVERALL
This was a film with a LOT of potential. Of course, with Scarlett Johansson playing the lead character, I was hopeful. But then the movie, directed by Burman and Pulcini -- those who brought us American Splendor -- failed to live up to expectations. It was a decent movie, but not one I would want to see again.
Taking a step back, the beginning of this movie was great. We had characters with no real names, and a tour of a freaky museum, and I really liked that. It was showing the story a bit differently than the conventional format.
Then the actual meat of the story begins, and it almost turns into the Lifetime Movie Of The Week. We have the protagonist who is almost literally forced into being a nanny for a young child, instead of following up her college degree. You've probably seen enough movies to understand what's going to happen next, and for the most part you can probably guess the rest of the movie.
The saving grace, other than Johannson and Alicia Keyes (who plays her best friend, and has a good role in the movie) are the meetings of the mothers who have nannies. The way the nannies are treated and talked about in the movie are a bit eye opening.
Some have compared this movie to The Devil Wears Prada, with a character getting in over her head, and they almost hit the nail. However, this would be Prada Lite. Prada 50% off, actually. Except this movie didn't have the protagonist getting early copies of the new Harry Potter book, which still bugs me about Prada... but I digress. Prada had a more central storyline that didn't hide anything, whereas Nanny Diaries seemed like a parody of somebody looking at Prada and trying to emulate it.
PRO vs. NO
PRO: It's a cute movie with a child that (somewhat) grows on you. Scarlett Johansson does a good job, as does Laura Linney playing the socialite mother. The love interest and romantic storyline was interesting, with likable characters.
NO: The beginning of the movie was great. After 15 minutes in we didn't really see much of anything that reminded me how the movie started. It had a LOT of potential to be something different, but it chose not to.
QUOTE
"There's a common belief among anthropologists that you must immerse yourself in an unfamiliar world in order to truly understand your own."
FINAL BELL
-- 2.5 out of 5 -- A movie that I would not normally had seen if not for a friend. I didn't feel like it was a waste of time, but it was a waste of a good beginning.
WORTH THE PRICE OF ADMISSION?:
If you're expecting a movie called "The Nanny Diaries" you'll enjoy this one. If you have expectations due to the beginning of the movie, you probably won't.
