Movie isn’t ‘what a girl wants’
All Daphne Reynolds (Amanda Bynes) ever really wanted is to meetthe dad she’s never known. Growing up in New York with her lovingand free-spirited musician mother Libby (Kelly Preston), she makesher mom tell the story of her parents’ whirlwind romance over andover.
Now, at 17, Daphne is determined to live out her fantasy of astorybook relationship with her long-absent dad. She impulsivelyhops a flight to London, where she discovers that her father ishigh profile politician Lord Henry Dashwood (Colin Firth).
Needless to say, Henry is dumbfounded to discover he has adaughter and together with his mother, Lady Jocelyn (EileenAtkins), they open Dashwood manor to the spirited girl.
As Daphne and Henry test their newfound relationship, the teenhas a hard time fitting in with stuffy British high society andbegins to jeopardize her father’s political career. She tries tosuppress her bubbly personality and turn herself into a respectabledebutante, but Daphne realizes she’s giving up too much of herselfto be Henry’s daughter.
The question is, will Henry realize it is he who is not made forthe suffocating life he’s been shoved into and reclaim his daughterand the only woman he has ever loved? Oh, stop – the suspense iskilling us.
The 17-year-old Bynes is already a brand name in comedy – atleast to the ‘tween set who, from the time Bynes was 10 years old,have enjoyed her slapstick antics on Nickelodeon’s variety show”All That,” her own variety show “The Amanda Show” and her currentWB sitcom “What I Like About You.”
Bynes is all grown up now and as the cute, sexy and klutzyDaphne. She excels at performing pratfalls and infuses charm intothe character. It is clear, however, that the young comedian hassome work to do before becoming a good actress.
It’s co-star Colin Firth, however, that turns lemons intolemonade with his performance. A master at English stiff-upper-lipacting, Firth is actually quite good here, successfully conveyingthe pain of a man who’s missed out on 17 years of a child he’salways wanted. Firth’s moments with Bynes are the film’s highlight,and a painful reminder that when the film isn’t going through themotions, it’s quite a pleasant diversion.
The film stays within strict boundaries and effectivelysuffocates itself with its own lethargic nature and often sluggishpace. It’s not that you can see the plot coming from a mile away,but that the filmmakers don’t seem to care that you can.
TV director Dennie Gordon hasn’t mastered the art of filmmaking.Not only are many of the shots blurry and poorly lit, often timesit seems Bynes is shot through a softer lens than the other actors.As well, the sugar-pop theme gets out of hand, trying way too hardto appeal to the hip and cool ‘tweeners.
Sure, 11 to 14-year-old girls are going to love it, especiallythe sweet love story between Daphne and a local London musician Ian(Oliver James). It’s only the heart of the story – thefather-daughter relationship – that keeps the film from fallinginto just another Teen Beat tableau.
Admittedly, I could see a 12-year-old girl thinking this is thebest film she’s ever seen. I also find it difficult to be hard onany film that features a song by The Donnas. But What A GirlWants isn’t nearly the graceful entertainment it should’vebeen, and the result is a pretty dry moviegoing experience for therest of us.
What a Girl Wants may make you reminisce about your ownfather-child relationship. It’s just sitting through the rest ofthe teenage girlie stuff that is a little hard to take.
