SCREEN

Because I Said So

Benjamin Spacek

Directed by Michael Lehmann   Rated PG-13  Once a decade, it seems, pedestrian director Lehmann makes a good movie. It's not the greatest track record, but then, some filmmakers go their entire careers without distinguishing themselves at all. In the '80s he helmed the great high-school satire Heathers, and in the '90s he made the enchanting romantic comedy The Truth About Cats & Dogs. So he's about due, but this terribly titled effort comes up short.

Whatever the project, he has some kinship with stories centered on the opposite gender. As a director, though, he appears totally dependant upon his cast and screenwriters for results. Here he gets half that equation, with the ever-affable Keaton, a charming Moore and a script filled with clichés and obvious plotting.

Keaton plays single-mother-of-three Daphne, who's none too thrilled with the prospect of her 60th birthday. Piper Perabo and Lauren Graham are mostly on-hand for comic relief and feel-good bonding scenes, but hapless sister Milly (Moore) seems bound to follow mother's footsteps. Desperate to deter her daughter from making the same mistakes she did, Daphne places a personal ad and starts interviewing potential suitors for Milly.

What ensues is a predictable, uneven, if mostly amiable, comedy. Milly is inundated with two potential matches; cute-but-calculated architect Tom Everett Scott (mom's choice), and cute-but-unstable musician Macht, whom mother fears is a heartbreaker. Never mind letting Milly decide for herself, because mother's overbearing ways are what stir the comedic waters.

At its best, the movie has some sincere insights into the mother-daughter relationship, and some of the scenes with these women hanging out have an easy, genial flow. But the tone of the picture changes abruptly from broad comedy to female schmaltz. The effect is like one big mood swing, and if that makes it more authentic, it also makes the point less focused.

Keaton is as lively as ever; Moore doesn't quite have the range for some of her tearful scenes, but she's a likable presence. If they lived in a less-contrived world, you'd almost believe they were family.

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