I Could Never Be Your Woman

I Could Never Be Your Woman casts Michelle Pfeiffer as Rosie, a writer/producer on a disposable teen drama who finds herself falling for the series’ latest hire (Paul Rudd’s Adam). Despite the rather severe difference in their respective ages – she’s 40 and he’s 29 – the two embark on a relationship that’s fraught with precisely the sort of complications that one might’ve expected. That writer/director Amy Heckerling reportedly used experiences from her own life as fodder for the film’s storyline is nothing short of astonishing, as I Could Never Be Your Woman has been infused with a distinctly over-the-top sensibility that effectively drains the proceedings of anything even resembling authenticity. The most obvious victim of this is Rudd, who finds himself trapped within the confines of an absurdly (and unreasonably) broad character – to such an extent that it becomes increasingly difficult to believe that Rosie would actually fall for this ill-mannered douchebag. The inclusion of several undeniably strange elements – ie Rosie’s inept yet oddly manipulative secretary – only exacerbates the film’s various problems, and it’s ultimately not difficult to envision most of these characters (as well as the almost uniformly contrived situations) placed comfortably within the context of a garden-variety sitcom.

** out of ****