Committed (R)

Somewhat bizarre chick flick. R for language.

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Movie details

Studio: Miramax
Directed By: Lisa Krueger
Cast: Heather Graham
Release Date: 04/28/2000
Genre: Comedy
MPAA Rating: R
MPAA Explanation: language

Parents need to know

Parents need to know that the movie is rated R for language and sexual references. Carl's artist neighbor makes sexual overtures to Joline that include suggestive caressing of a life-size doll he made of Joline. Carmen's former boyfriend is abusive and threatening. Jay lives with a lesbian couple and occasionally has sex with one of them, which makes the other one jealous and possessive. There is also a brief but weird brother-sister kiss.

Families can talk about the challenge of maintaining a balance between supporting the person you love and enabling destructive or self-destructive behavior. They may also want to talk about Joline's terms, "spiritual wheelchair" and "spiritual coma," and the metaphor of the rattlesnake poison.

Message
Violence
Sex
Language

Message

Social Behavior:

Inter-cultural relationships.

Consumerism:

Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco:

Smoking and drinking.

Violence

Scenes of peril, character threaten to hurt another.

Sex

Sexual references and situations, adultery, lesbian couple.

Language

Some strong language.

Common Sense says

What's the story?

Reviewed by Nell Minow

Joline (Heather Graham) believes in commitment. When she gets married, she has the ring tattooed on her finger. Less than two years later, when her husband Carl (Luke Wilson) leaves her without telling her where he's going or why, she tracks him down. She parks near his new home and watches him, inadvertently disrupting his relationships with his new girlfriend (Patricia Velasquez) and his boss (Dylan Baker). Joline becomes friends with his girlfriend, Carmen, and gets advice from Carmen's grandfather (Alfonso Arau), ultimately ending up "committed" in both senses of the word.

Is it any good?

Joline is less committed to Carl than she is to the idea of commitment. Her sense of herself is so deeply tied up in the idea of permanence that she doesn't stop to think about whether Carl is the one she should be committed to. And after watching this movie, you may find yourself committed to the idea of finding a better (or at least less offbeat) chick flick.