
Variety
What appears on paper to be an ideal three-dimensional, morally complex role for the quick-witted comedienne backfires in practice.
Full reviewTina Fey and Paul Rudd star in this comedy drama, from the director of About a Boy, about a straight-laced Princeton University admissions officer who begins to re-evaluate her priorities after being introduced to a strange young man who could be the son she gave up for adoption years earlier.
Portia (Fey) is caught off-guard when she makes a recruiting visit to an alternative high school overseen by her former college classmate, the free-wheeling John (Rudd). John has figured that Jeremiah, his gifted student, might be her son. Portia starts bending the rules for Jeremiah, putting at risk her Princeton career and in the process finds her way to a surprising romance…
What appears on paper to be an ideal three-dimensional, morally complex role for the quick-witted comedienne backfires in practice.
Full reviewThese truly are dark and terrible times if we are forced to accept the elitist problems of an Ivy League college admissions officer as shameless fodder for a romcom.
Full reviewFey and Rudd are fun to watch, though not as much fun as they might have been in a riskier, crazier movie.
Full reviewThe comic material really isn't there, and the plot transitions feel forced and uncomfortable.
Full reviewPaul Weitz betrays an erratic grip on the comic tone, and the misguided central characters emerge, in the end, as less likeable than they ought to be.
Full reviewOccasionally charming but mostly bland fare from Weitz, despite the reliable cast. About A Boy remains the best showcase of his talents.
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