The Weitz brother's adaptation of Nick Hornby's bestseller can't help falling into the sugary-sweet Notting Hill trap. Hugh Grant's genuinely impressive as responsibility-free Will, who strikes up an unlikely friendship with weird 12-year-old Marcus and his troubled hippie mum. It's crucial that the brat isn't annoying: but boy, he is. Hornby's jokes and Badly Drawn Boy's songs add some edge.
Rating: 3 / 10
Retail dvd & vhs (universal pictures video, widescreen)
‘Even worse than Lou Reed. . .’
Paul Simonon: "Bob Dylan used to come to a lot of Clash shows"
Neil Young & Crazy Horse: London O2 Arena, June 17, 2013
The 22nd Uncut Playlist Of 2013
The Eagles: upcoming world tour "very well could be our last"
Keith Richards: "All experiments come to an end."
The Best Of 2013: Halftime Report
Consider this the last in a short series of encounters with somewhat cantankerous sorts, following accounts in this space over the couple of weeks of meetings with Lou Reed and Gordon Lightfoot, both of which have stirred some passing interest and lively comment. Today’s subject is Van Morrison...
