Sunday 26 March 2017

Weekend TV Movie Review: Coyote Ugly (2000), ITV2

Coyote Ugly 
2000
Cast: Piper Perabo, Adam Garcia, John Goodman, Maria Bello, Tyra Banks
Genre: Romantic Musical Comedy Drama
Worldwide Box Office Gross: over $113 million

Plot: Aspiring songwriter Violet Sanford comes out of her shell, after getting a job at a women's- run New York City bar that teases its male patrons








'Mundane G-Rated Showgirls Meets Aspiring Star Fanfare'

A Jerry Bruckheimer cross between Tom Cruise's 1988 hit, Cocktail with a bit of Showgirls, minus the profanity and sexual nudity, Coyote Ugly is a PG-13-ish chick flick affair that is originally based on a magazine article that was written by Elizabeth Gilbert. The same Elizabeth Gilbert who gave us the awful trite, based on the novel that is Eat Pray Love, and a Hollywood film that angered me and one I found appalling & degrading at every level, starring Julia Roberts in 2010, of whom sadly operated in the titular role as the equally unsympathetic and detestable lead protagonist, Liz Gilbert whose actions didn't sit well with me, one bit. 

In contrast, Coyote Ugly didn't really offend me so much, or be it at all - it just bored me and got worse, the further on it progressed.

A group of female strippers masquerading as bartenders serving booze and alcohol, whilst finding the time to shake their booty, Coyote Ugly is a film where Tyra Banks's character gets into law school and a young woman overhears a conversation over the amount of money the women make. Afterwards, she applies for a job, although deep down, she harbours aspirations in becoming a pop star. And she also falls in love with an Aussie, played by actor and dancer, Adam Garcia. 

And.... that's pretty much it. It's so yawning. It's every bit as clichéd that one can smell it a hundred miles away, trite and forgettable that I found it hard to care or take an interest in the events and scenes that occur in this film. The script is mediocre and straight up formulaic-yet boring, the performances are hardly grade-A stuff and the story lacked weight and genuine surprises. The bar brawl scene feels tacked on and comes across as forced as if the film really warranted it.

Coyote Ugly is a movie that would have operated better, had it been rated R and it was a lot more seedy, but also entertaining. Yet as a PG-13 effort, everything associated with bars that are more adult-orientated is stripped away, drowned out and replaced with a typical deathbed scene found in most melodramas, rowdy and horny men & droning dialogue uttered. Bruckheimer and the director make it visually appealing, along with an equally appealing soundtrack. But visuals and music alone don't make up for every other aspect of this film, which flatters to make any type of impression, whatsoever. As a family friendly film, appealing to families and teenage girls, it just doesn't work. It relies on too much melodrama and there are not enough standout moments that make Coyote Ugly tick. 

The characters aren't worth shouting about, but for the main character, we don't really know about the rest. It also tries to make me sympathise with Violet and go along with her ventures, but I didn't buy into that character or cared one bit for her and the others. There is not one single standout performance from any cast member and the film's narrative just wasn't believable enough. 

The only positives I liked about it was the soundtrack and the songs, that include the LeAnn Rimes worldwide hit, 'Can't Fight The Moonlight'. 

Other than that, Coyote Ugly is one of the worst movies from the year of 2000 I've sat through.





Final Verdict: 

Showgirls without the nudity, the unintentional surprises, twists and turns, Coyote Ugly would have benefited from being targeted towards adults and it had a much edgier, sordid tone with better characterisations. The story is so pointless and weak.

And a low for Jerry Bruckheimer, this is truly a musical- based drama without the soul, feeling or drive. Coyote Ugly is so dull, hackneyed - and yet so poor, it has nothing much to offer and is virtually stagnant throughout. 


This Coyote is not so much ugly - rather trite, unmemorable and forgettable.




Overall: 





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