Movie Review by Nigel A. Messenger
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Sally Field, Bob Newhart, Luke Wilson, Regina King
Director: Charles Herman-Wurmfeld
After the huge success of LEGALLY BLONDE it was obvious that there would have to be a sequel. But one of the reasons LEGALLY BLONDE worked was because of its fresh style, some of it was funny simply because seeing Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) with a fluffy pink pen in a Harvard law class looked so bizarre it just made you laugh.
LEGALLY BLONDE 2 repeats the effect and it is still funny, but now we’re used to it so the initial belly laugh has gone and it’s replaced with a smile.
Once again Elle finds a reason to leave Bel Air as she trots off with her chihuahua to Washington DC to fight for animal rights when she finds out that her pet dog’s mother is being used in an animal testing program for a cosmetics company.
She wants to get a bill passed to stop animal testing but comes up against stuffy senators and a system that’s bogged down in procedure and red tape. So she decides to remind the politicians in her own unique style the reason they are in power – to represent the people and what the people want.
It’s a simple story and even, one might say a worthy one, but the problem is, it takes itself too seriously. The first film worked because of its novelty value and the fact that Reese Witherspoon puts her character across so well. In this one Reese does her thing perfectly but the writers forgot to put in the real laughs. We still smile because of Reese Witherspoon’s characterisation but the novelty value has gone so that’s now not enough to create the kind of laughter the film should have delivered.
The movie is still entertaining but while you will smile a lot the real laughter is in short supply.
