Like a frothy pop song, Music and Lyrics is a fun, lighthearted flick that you just can't help smiling along to.
Hugh Grant plays Alex Fletcher, the uncomfortably familiar washed-up '80s pop star trying to make a comeback by booking class reunions and state fairs. That is, until his manager comes to him with an offer. The newest pop princess who is "bigger than Britney and Christina put together" has requested Grant to write a duet for her newest CD. The only problem is it's due in less than a week and Grant is hopeless in the lyrics department.
Enter klutzy, free-spirited Drew Barrymore (Fever Pitch) who just happens to be at the right place at the right time. Grant is convinced she's a natural lyricist, and desperately tries to convince her to work on the project with him. At first she resists because of mysterious reasons, but eventually gives in.
The plot of the movie is completely predictable, and if you expect anything else, you will be disappointed. It is the formulaic romantic comedy.
However, the writing is snappy, the characters engaging and the music surprisingly catchy.
It also miraculously avoids most of the clichés that plague the genre.
Writer-director Marc Lawrence once again creates the perfect character for Grant (his other being the egotistical yet likeable jerk in Two Weeks Notice).
Grant takes advantage of the good writing and steals the show as the self-deprecating has-been.
Whether clad in white leather or swiveling his hips to menopausal women, he brings a humor, charm and vulnerability to his character that is both subtle and natural.
He breaks out of the stereotype he could have easily slipped into and actually makes his character likable.
But I expected no less from the king of romantic comedies.
Grant's part in the opening scene alone -- a deliciously cheesy pop video -- is worth the price of admission.
Barrymore is adorably ditzy in her role but pales in comparison to Grant. The two are cute together, but the romance feels forced. It would have felt truer had it been a friendship instead.
Adam Schlesinger, from Fountains of Wayne, wrote the score and most of the original music in the movie.
He obviously understands the essence of pop, and the film is blessed with some engagingly simple songs that you'll walk out of the theatre singing.
Most surprisingly, there is a satirical overtone to the movie that gives it a hidden dimension. Throughout the film the writers poke fun at everything in the music industry from the tired comeback shows (think Celebrity Boxing) to sexually charged yet "spiritual" pop princesses.
With so many predictably trite romantic comedies being forced on us, Music and Lyrics stands out as a genuinely charming flick that doesn't try to be more than what it is. Grade: B+
