Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!

Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! takes the tiresomely familiar notion of an inhibited Mr. Right fighting a handsome, hollow Mr. Wrong for a beautiful, good-hearted girl and gives these characters more character than they've had since the Betty Grable musicals of the 1940s. A refreshing twist on a tired romantic comedy plot, the film roundly mocks clichés in its story of a small-town sweetie (irresistibly buoyant Kate Bosworth from Blue Crush) flown to Hollywood in a sweepstakes, who is swept off her feet by her favorite movie star (the impossibly handsome Josh Duhamel)--a shallow guy honestly seeking to leave his shallowness behind--much to the snarky chagrin of her pining best friend (show-stealing Topher Grace from That '70s Show). Although the ending is inevitable, the picture toys many times with the savvy viewer's expectations, starting with the title character's genuine, initially platonic interest in having the girl's goodness rub off on him. Because the writing is crisp and sardonic, and because the characters break their molds, this is a substantial, comically self-aware step above the vast majority of similarly-themed films. Recommended. (R. Blackwelder)