The Good

It was interesting getting to see all these women share the screen.

The Bad

Why did the MovieWeb powers that be have me review this?

Taking what is essentially the plot of an indy film and schmaltzing it up a great deal, Georgia Rule is one of those movies that doesn't seem to really make sense. The plot is coherent, it just doesn't seem like this tale of a mother (Felicity Huffman) who can't control her daughter (Lindsay Lohan), so she takes her home to live with her mother (Jane Fonda) has all the trappings of a gritty indy without the indy trappings. In fact, they might have been better served to incorporate some of Lohan's offscreen antics as that would have lent this movie the grittiness that it didn't achieve, simply by setting it where they did. Sadly, the fact that Huffman's character has issues with her mom only serves to underscore how pedestrian this whole affair is. In fact, you have probably noticed that I am only speaking about this movie in very vague ways because it was so forgettable that I really can't see any other way to discuss it.

What I am the most saddened about is that I really do like all the actors (I don't know how I feel about Lohan), and I am a huge Garry Marshall fan (he created Happy Days for crying out loud!),

but sadly I was never able to really get into Georgia Rule. It just felt like another dash of image conscious filmmaking with an actress like Felicity Huffman getting her paycheck so she could do more indies with hubby Bill, and Fonda and Lohan hoping to gain some acting propers (from one another) in the process.

Features

Deleted Scenes with Optional Director Commentary and Gag Reel

I began watching these deleted scenes with the director's commentary and then I found that I was wore interested in what Marshall was saying than what was on screen. So, I turned off the commentary track and just watched the deleted scenes for what they were. Let me just say that I don't think they would have really helped this movie and as such, I think that it was a good idea that they were excised. Playing at almost 2 hours, the last thing that Georgia Rule needed to be was an epic movie about a rekindling of relationships over a long summer. As for the Gag Reel, if you don't know what that is than all I can do is congratulate you for making Georgia Rule your first DVD experience.

The Making of Georgia Rule

On the Set with Garry Marshall

As you now know I am a huge Garry Marshall fan so I made it a point of watching this. We see him move throughout the production, tending to what needed to be tended to and essentially only putting in his directorial hand where he felt it was necessary. Also, members of the cast and crew discuss what it is like working with Marshall. One thing I have always appreciated about him is how simple he seems to make things. He

The Women of Georgia Rule

Feature Commentary with Director Garry Marshall

I love the commentaries that Garry Marshall does. At times he seems to repeat himself or oversimplify things he is talking about, but all that does (for me) is make what he's done seem that much more accessible. For this track he discussed working with the actresses, what it was like on the set, and as you guess stayed clear of any controversial subjects. I might be upset if Marshall hadn't created one of my favorite TV shows, if this wasn't the sort of subject matter that he normally does. Now if this was David Fincher making this movie, that would be a whole other story.

Video

Anamorphic Widescreen - 2.35:1. Shot with a fairly traditional style and cut the same way, I knew that no matter what this movie was going to go down easy. Garry Marshall has a style of shooting and editing that just makes his films work. They walk like movies, they sound like movies and that is how they present themselves. In the case of Georgia Rule, this film seems to adhere to all those trappings, it is really just a case of there not being enough of a story to work off of. Also, this movie seemed so typical and well worn that at no moment was there a question of what might happen next.

Audio

English, Spanish and French Dolby Digital 5.1. Subtitled in English, Spanish and French. This movie sounded solid. Again, there wasn't anything about it that I thought was that spectacular but for the most part it sounded okay. The music accompanied the scenes when they were supposed to, there was the usual swelling of notes here and there, but that said, there isn't too much more that one can say about the audio on this DVD.

Package

From what I recall, the front cover image of this DVD which features Fonda, Huffman and Lindsay Lohan was the exact same cover that was used to promote this movie's theatrical bow. The back of this cover gives us three images from this movie (two of which show off Lohan), there is a small description, a Bonus Features listing, a cast list and system specs. Again, nothing too special but what can you expect?

Final Word

I do feel a little bad that I have been so harsh on Georgia Rule. Anybody who has ever read my reviews knows that I am all over the place. Stuff that you might think I would like I end up hating, and other DVDs that might be deemed crap I actually do like. Let me just say I am not trying to outsmart you. I am not trying to be one of those reviewers that goes against the grain simply to go against the grain. To my knowledge the reviews of Georgia Rule were uniformly dismal. When one throws in the that Felicity Huffman couldn't even save this movie from the power of the pen, that is saying something indeed.

Mind you, I don't think that the people involved here set out to make a bad film. I think that maybe they all thought that with the wealth of talent and track records, perhaps something could happen on the screen that wasn't in the Georgia Rule script. As it turns out, what we got was a movie with two well respected actresses that didn't play as anything that special. I mean when the movie costs $20 million to make and it makes back $20 million worldwide, I guess it isn't a total turkey. However, something tells me that Universal didn't put this film together so that it would only break even.

Georgia Rule was released May 10, 2007.