The Bachelor

I came to an epiphany during this innocuous-enough-on-the-surface romantic comedy regarding why so many contemporary romantic comedies are so bad: The Bachelor is the latest in a long line of films where we're expected to get dewy-eyed over any pairing of attractive, pleasant people just because they're attractive and pleasant. In this case, Attractive and Pleasant Exhibit A is Jimmy (Chris O'Donnell), a marriage-phobic fellow who stands to inherit millions from an eccentric relative if he is wed by his 30th birthday. Attractive and Pleasant Exhibit B Anne (Renee Zellweger), Jimmy's long-time sweetheart, balks at his proposal, leaving Jimmy to scramble for any old girlfriend to be his wife. It's the sort of premise where a shallow guy learns What Really Matters, except that Jimmy is already a world-class altruist, sacrificing his own happiness for employees who stand to lose their jobs under another condition of the will. And that's the essence of the gutlessness of The Bachelor--a fear of giving the characters flaws to overcome on their way to happiness, resulting in a warm-n-fuzzy emotional pudding with no spark, no energy, no humanity. The Bachelor is love among the mannequins. Not recommended. (S. Renshaw)