Man About Town
Review
by Clint Morris
Like a one-legged fat man informed that he has to
blow up an air mattress for some tired guests that are less than 15
minutes away, Writer/director Mike Binder really should’ve
started pumping in air earlier and faster into Man about Town
if it was intended to stay solid, afloat and upright for its entire
duration. Though still an easily endurable, and enjoyable, ride
it’s lacking in some much-needed bounce, having only been filled
to the halfway mark. Pity, because it’s just the kind of comeback
vehicle Ben ‘see Gigli didn’t completely kill my career’ Affleck needed.
Affleck carries the film – and yes, surprisingly, he does carry
the film with an impressive, and rather surprisingly effective turn
– as a talent agent whose life goes from bad to worse in a matter
of days…. Or, in this case, journal entries. His wife (Rebecca
Romjin) is sleeping with his star client, he’s in dire need of
some top talent to keep his agency afloat, and to top it off, a gossip
columnist – masquerading as a fellow student in his journal
writing class – has snatched his journals, which details just how
broken his life is, with plans to publish.
Though quite well written, and a nice performance piece for Affleck (in fact, it could be his best performance since Good Will Hunting), Man About Town
is both too sluggish, and not gripping enough (especially if you
don’t have the faintest interest in how Hollywood agents work,
because it is essentially all about that) to entrance the everyday
filmgoer. It is also a film that’s not quite sure what it wants
to be – is it a comedy, is it a quirky satire of the talent
agent, is it a drama, it is a romance, or it is a thriller? The genre
profusion works for some – in fact, it worked for Binder’s
last film, The Upside of Anger - but shifts too impulsively for it to work here.
If you need to be reassured that Affleck still
belongs in Hollywood – see it. Just wait till discount day at the
local multiplex.
3 out
of 5
Man About Town
Australian release: 31st August, 2006
Cast: Ben Affleck, Rebecca Romijn, Gina Gershon, Amber Valletta, Kal Penn
Director: Mike Binder
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