these two movies were practically the same movie which is why they are getting the same entry.
1) both set in manhattan
2) both with a really rich guy and a (relatively) poor woman
3) both women with “causes”
4) both movies featuring norah jones music (though two weeks notice actually had her cameoing)
5) both cheesy romances with really no redeeming qualities.
honestly i liked main in manhattan slightly more. it actually had more of a plot. sad, huh? and i don’t even really like jlo whereas i do like sandra bullock. heh.
so these movies primarily sucked based on the fact that they were kind of degrading to women. though 2 weeks was also not very shining the light positive on men either when the example was just hugh grant’s character (and his driver was pretty shitty too. being all with the speech about knowing how to work the women but then revealing that he still lived at home and was under his momma’s thumb). maid was a little better since jlo’s portrayal of a single mother was actually pretty good and her ability to cut ralph fiennes down on some racial issues was well delivered. and she had a job and was getting a promotion and kept and expanded the job even after marrying the rich guy so that was a little bit better at showing a positive role model i guess. 2 weeks on the other hand, even though bullock’s character went to harvard law, she constantly needed saving. there’s this one scene where she has to go to the bathroom (it’s dumb, disgusting, and unnecessary) and he carries her to this mobile home (they’re on the freeway) and convinces its occupants to let her use it. and then they lose thier car and he has to call for a helicopter to come pick them up.
the one thing i did like about 2 weeks (and this totally just makes me a romantic) was this one scene where they’re in a restaurant and first hugh grant spoons all the ice out of his water and into her cup, then she takes all the wierd crunchy stuff off the top of his salad and puts it on hers and he takes all the radishes off her salad and puts them on his. they do all of this without even thinking about it. it’s just something that has become ingrained because of how close they have become and it’s adorable. and it’s perfect. the timing is right on. and at the end her going, “radish! radish!” cause there’s one left on the plate and him removing it for her is just so cute. oh man.
the one last thing that is the same about the movies is that it’s the man who has to change for the woman. at the end of both, the men have screwed up thier chances for love (ralph fiennes for not accepting the maid when it’s revealed that she isn’t some high class society dame and hugh grant for going back on a promise not to destroy this landmark building) and the men have to find the woman again and grovel and be re-accepted. which….is all well and good i guess. except for how it’s so unlikely and also so trite. what, it’s always that the woman has some convictions or something and the man has to alter his perception of things to fall in line? or it just doesn’t really show either party to be realistic or well-adjusted. why doesn’t the guy just find some woman who hasn’t lied to him about their status in society or some other woman who isn’t so quirky and demanding? why don’t the women find men who automatically accept them no matter what or who don’t back out of promises or forget about trust?
romantic comedy, yes. fun, yes. good morals? noooooooo.
rentals. both of them. really.