Posted: 02/05/2001

Head Over Heels

(2001)

by Wayne Case

Freddie Prinze, Jr., and Monica Potter flounder in misguided comedy.

This is a big disappointment for me, especially considering that: I like the trailer; I like the one-sheet; Freddy Prinze, Jr. continues to be one of my favorite young actors despite a string of bad films; Monica Potter is one of my new favorites. This is director, Mark Waters’ follow up to his well-received first film, The House Of Yes (1997). And yet, absolutely nothing goes right in this truly lame effort.

As is so often the case these days, the problem seems to be the writing. In this one, four individuals are credited. John J. Strauss and Ed Decter co-wrote There’s Something About Mary along with The Farrelly Brothers. Neither of the other two, Ron Burch and David Kidd have any previous theatrical writing credits. There is plenty of blame to go around.

The premise is promising. A young New York City professional, Amanda (Monica Potter) finds a great apartment that she’ll share with four gorgeous young fashion models. While very attractive, they are not very smart but they are very promiscuous. (Imagine that!)

Along with the reasonable rent, a big plus is the fact that their apartment has a great view into Jim’s (Freddie Prinze, Jr.) apartment in a building next door, and Jim rarely pulls the drapes. As usual in this type film situation, the young woman simply can’t find a decent man. Amanda and Jim “meet cute” when the giant dog he is walking tries to mount Amanda. I don’t find bestiality funny or appropriate material in mainstream entertainment, but considering its use in several current hit films, including Eddie Murphy’s Nutty Professor II, maybe I’m wrong. I guess that I’m also in the minority when it comes to finding the smell of shit to be hilarious. Exactly like in Big Momma’s House, a character in this one gets trapped hiding behind a shower curtain while another character takes a huge, loud and smelly dump. Since these writers seem to have shit on the brain, there is yet another shit scene where the four models all end up together in a restroom stall with an unflushed toilet full of—guess what! They are soon covered with the brown slime. Funny? Not to me. Anyhow, the girls see what they think is Jim beating a woman to death. Rear Window (1954) this ain’t…and, of course, Jim didn’t really do it. Defying any logic, Amanda continues to date Jim even though she thinks he committed murder. Go figure. Anyhow, we are now treated to poorly filmed chases and introduced to the Russian mob. I’ll just have to let you guess whether it all works out for Jim and Amanda in the end.

My first introduction to Monica Potter was in two 1998 releases, Without Limits and Patch Adams. She played a college co-ed in both and was effective and extremely likeable. In a change of pace, she will next be co-starring with Morgan Freeman in the thriller Along Came A Spider. I predict stardom, and suspect that she has quite a range. Looking and acting a lot like Julia Roberts isn’t going to hurt her and I’d love to see the two play sisters.

Freddie Prinze, Jr. needs a good film. No one is going to mistake this for that. After small, but effective, turns in the two I Know What You Did Last Summer hits, Freddie made a great impression in the excellent She’s All That (1999). Unfortunately, it’s been downhill since then with Wing Commander followed by Down To You and then Boys and Girls. Not only were they bad, the public has started to become increasingly less interested. Further, opening weekend business (2/2/2001) for Head Over Heels is weak at less than $5 million. He has completed Summer Catch, scheduled for release later this year. It sounds interesting, based on the following plot summary: A rich girl whose family summers on Cape Cod has a romance with a local poor boy who hopes to become a major league baseball player. While the credited writer, Kevin Falls, does have some decent credits, the director, Michael Tollin produced and directed a television series called Cousin Skeeter (1998). I don’t find that news reassuring.

My rating for Head Over Heels is a 4 out of a possible 10. That’s probably too generous, but the two stars are worth seeing even if the vehicle isn’t. Running time is 86 minutes and the rating is “PG-13.”

Wayne Case works in the film industry in Hollywood.

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