This brings us to "Serendipity," another film which follows the hallowed formula of "When Harry Met Sally ..." by combining New York scenery, comic quips and would-be lovers who are apart for years before destiny finally intervenes.
Sara (Kate Beckinsdale) and Jonathan (John Cusack) meet while Christmas shopping for their significant others at Bloomingdale's. When they both reach for the same pair of black cashmere gloves, sparks fly, and they spend a magical day together in New York. At day's end, Sara, a sworn believer in destiny and fate, convinces Jonathan to write his phone number on a five-dollar bill, while she writes hers on a copy of "Love in the Time of Cholera," which she'll sell at a used bookstore. If they're meant to be together, she argues, they'll cross paths again. They are, of course, meant to be together.
Despite this potentially charming premise, "Serendipity" works clumsily.
Director Peter Chelsom at times seems to be directing a music video for Jay-Z. Someone should let him in on the secret that there are other ways of showing that time has passed besides speeding up clocks and reducing car traffic to dots of light. Snowfall is also not a get-out-of-jail-free card for enhancing lukewarm romantic scenes.
These cliches are not only groan-inducing on their own, but they also disrupt the narrative flow. The hyperactive time cues only add to the sense that the movie is unable to find its pace from scene to scene. Stock New York locations are used as backdrops, when their importance and even plausibility in the scenes are unclear.
The script, written by Mark Klein, is funny in all the right moments and at times is truly earnest and meaningful; however, all the talk of fate, destiny and serendipity veers the script towards a land of disturbingly maudlin sentimentality. One leaves the movie feeling somewhat satisfied, but the movie could have been better or at least less cloyingly cute.
Cusack, the only A-list actor now working who specializes in romantic comedies, would be better served to return to high-caliber scripts such as "High Fidelity," which he co-wrote. When he is given room to emote and breathe life into three-dimensional characters, Cusack can be a wonderful actor; his Jonathan, however, remains a wooden caricature. That said, this is a step up from that wretched two-hour waste, "America's Sweethearts."
Babe-of-the-moment Kate Beckinsdale ("Pearl Harbor") tries her best to make the journey she embarks on seem worth it. Succeeding sometimes and not so much other times, her performance often seems uneven and unjustified. The other actors usually don't provide the motivation for her to cry or seem even slightly upset.
The joy of this movie resides in its supporting cast. Jeremy Piven is delightful as Jonathan's best friend. Piven moves the story along and injects true feeling along with comedic barbs. Molly Shannon contributes similarly as Sarah's best friend who ironically owns a New Age shop yet doesn't believe in fate.
The true gem among the supporting cast is Eugene Levy. Levy, of "Waiting for Guffman" and SCTV fame, could make a root canal seem like a walk in the park. As a Bloomingdale's clerk, Levy is truly hilarious. All of his trademark mannerisms are left unscathed by Chelsom's often too-quick direction.
All in all, there is nothing glaringly wrong with "Serendipity"-but there is nothing that particularly distinguishes it either. The worthy successor to "When Harry Met Sally ..." remains to be made.