As Good As It Gets

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

Watching Smother was perhaps the longest not-quite-90-minutes of my life. There wasn't a laugh to be had; in fact, I don't remember ever cracking a smile. Diane Keaton was horridly unfunny as a middle-aged chain-smoking dog hoarder, the textbook overbearing mother character, a relentlessly irritating woman who clearly suffers from some kind of personality disorder. She is manipulative, conniving, melodramatic, childish, narcissistic, and worst of all, boring.I suppose I should briefly mention the other characters, but why bother? It was just a long string of movie clichés--the dippy, socially inept distant relative who's just trying to break into "The Industry", the gruff and long-suffering but somehow still lovable father, the mild- mannered wife who just can't take it anymore (but eventually moves beyond the discord and resignedly comes home), the herd of unhousebroken dogs who like to chew throw pillows while everyone is away, etc.God, what a snore. I've never been a Diane Keaton fan and Smother only reminded me why. Overacting is overacting, no matter how many pictures you did in your prime. Her attempts at physical comedy were especially humiliating. What was the director thinking?While I like Dax Shepard and can even sometimes tolerate Liv Tyler, their performances were so lackluster and dull that it was clear that neither actor gave a damn about this movie. That was okay, because neither did I. Keaton's endless self-absorbed prattling was intolerable and at times Shepard's dislike for her seemed genuine. By the end of the movie I wanted to slap her myself.Awful.

After seeing the poster from the film Smother,I knew I was about to live one of those intolerable film experiences which make me want to take my eyes out.However,I felt a slight optimism because the movie had a solid cast which I thought it was going to rescue the movie.Unfortunately that did not happen.Smother is a horrible movie,but it is not execrable.That is the best I can say about it.The screenplay from Smother (written by the same guys from License to Wed,something which explains they have anything but talent for writing movies) is full of cheap and predictable humor.Seriously,I did not laugh even once watching this film.Besides,the solid cast I previously mentioned is absolutely wasted.After the big number of garbage she has been involved in (like the monumentally atrocious and execrable Because I Said So),some people may think the career from Diane Keaton is extinguishing.However,it is impossible for me to forget the excellent performances she brought in previous decades,in films like Annie Hall or Baby Boom.On Smother,she makes her best effort with her performance,but her character is so horribly written she cannot do anything with it.Dax Shepard has left on me a good impression with his solid performances on the films Baby Mama and Idiocracy.However,the screenplay from Smother does not give him too much to do.Mike White also makes a good effort,but he cannot do anything.He is a very talented screenwriter (like he has shown on the films The Good Girl and School of Rock),so I would have liked to see he was one of the screenwriters from this movie,instead of only acting on it.Liv Tyler suffers from the same situation of all the previously mentioned actors: being wasted.The worst fail from Smother is being absolutely boring and unfunny.Its screenplay is nothing more than a collection of forced scenes and situations we have seen on sit-coms.Stay far away from this crappy comedy.

Diane Keaton is going through a really rough couple of years. Lets check her last few movies:Because I Said So-Shocking film and didn't go so well at the box office, Mama's Boy- Shocking film, horrific at the box office and Mad Money-A good movie in my book, but a poor box office return.So where does that leave Smother? Here we have a mother who moves in with her son causing chaos in her son's life. Its a fun comedy, but with nothing new or exciting that we haven't seen before. Dax Shepherd steers the ship, and is actually not to bad as the lead who's life just keeps getting harder and harder. As for Keaton, well she is a lot of fun as the annoying mother who doesn't want to move out of her son's house. She plays it rather well and her character is actually quite likable. She has great chemistry with Dax and together they make a great team.So what flaws this movie if not Keaton, who has been out of form for so long? Its Liv Tyler, her performance is so fake and forced that you find yourself cringing at each word that comes out of her mouth. She is not believable at all and in a scene of her being angry she is practically laugh worthy! Its good to see Keaton slowly getting back into form after her shocking last couple of movies, Mad Money not included. But Liv Tyler needs to try harder and she is the real problem with this film. But other than that, Smother is a not bad comedy for a lazy afternoon.

I didn't expect too much from this one, although I'm hugest Diane's fan, but I thought it sort of "Mama's boy". It was a very pleasant surprise, that it was really NICE movie!! It's a shame, that it hadn't wide release!!!!! First of all, Diane's playing my own mother first part of the movie, and I laughed hysterically!! Marylinn is eccentric and crazy, but it's not Diane Keaton's own craziness and eccentricity. She invented some really hilarious behavioral mannerisms, so it really makes you laugh hard. Second part of movie Diane's playing me 30 years later from now, and that's why I cried... It was my own speech on Helen Cooper funeral: "I spend all my life, trying to please anybody and be whomever they expect me to be, but just not REAL ME. And for what? I prefer to stay alone now, than be surrounded by the strangers, who pretend to be my family" (not exact quotation, but it just exactly ABOUT MY OWN LIFE, people... It makes me think seriously, do I want to find myself in the same miserable condition at 60,like Marylinn Cooper?.. Liv Tyler is a sweetheart and Dax Shepard is REALLY GOOD too. My husband laughed at the scene, where manager in carpet-store teaches Noah how to sell carpets behind the old lady. And also, I'm sorry, but the moment of Helen Cooper death is Hilarious!!!! So, the movie is really worth watching! I truly loved it! Thank you, creators!