Review: The Rewrite
Hugh Grant has been in semi-retirement for a decade - a happily self-imposed exile from a profession that stirs little interest in him and whose accompanying celebrity culture offends his steadfastly private nature. His involvement in The Rewrite speaks to his regard of writer-director Marc Lawrence, with whom he has collaborated on Two Weeks Notice, Music and Lyrics, and Did You Hear About the Morgans? Lawrence has proven himself adept at showcasing Grant's charms, which have transitioned from the flustered fop of his younger years to a grumpy, barely reparable cad. The self-loathing cynic Grant essays in The Rewrite is firmly in his wheelhouse and, whilst the film doesn't colour outside the lines of the genre, it is still a congenial work fuelled by its two charismatic leads and strong supporting cast.
Keith Michaels (Grant) is an Oscar-winning screenwriter just this side of forgotten. Studio heads and people on the street rave about the years-old Paradise Misplaced, the film that made his career, but the failure of his subsequent films has left him scrambling and in a slump. His agent (Caroline Aaron) comes up with an out-of-left-field gig: teaching a screenwriting course at Binghamton University in New York. With rent, alimony, and other bills to pay and no immediate prospects, Keith agrees.
Keith arrives, cloaked in contempt. As far as he's concerned, anything worth knowing can't be taught so he intends to do as little as possible whilst carrying on the charade. To that end, he doesn't even bother to read the box full of student applications - he selects the prettiest girls to be in his class (with two token guys - a Star Wars-obsessed geek and a constantly sniffling nerd) - and tells the class to meet again in a month after they've completed their work-in-progress scripts. Needless to say, his behaviour - not to mention his whoppingly stupid affair with one of his students Karen (Bella Heathcote) - twig the antennae of the uptight and conservative Professor Weldon (Allison Janney), a tenured and published professor who also heads up the ethics committee.
As to be expected, Keith's resistance to his situation soon dissipates, thanks in no small part to Holly (Marisa Tomei), a single mother holding down two jobs to pursue her dream of being a writer. She talks her way into his class, immediately sensing his apathy and insecurity and is soon advising him to connect with his students and also reach out and make amends with his estranged son. Tomei, fetching and infectious, makes for a fine foil. Her warmth and spark play well with Grant's discomfort and grumpiness.
The Rewrite hits all the expected beats. For a rom-com, it's slightly surprising that it should be so chaste - Grant and Tomei don't even touch each other much less kiss - and even more surprising that the lightness contains a bit of lead. Still, it's an enjoyable diversion.
The Rewrite
Directed by: Marc Lawrence
Written by: Marc Lawrence
Starring: Hugh Grant, Marisa Tomei, Allison Janney, J.K. Simmons, Bella Heathcote, Chris Elliott, Caroline Aaron
