Alchemy, The Film Arcade,
Gail Bean, Elizabeth McGovern, Anders Holm, Cobie Smulders
Samantha (Cobie Smulders) is a science teacher in a mid-city school that is about to be closed down for lack of funds. Still she’s trying to make a difference in the lives of her students. One who has really impressed her is Jasmine (Gail Bean) who has an honor student an obviously college bound. Samantha suddenly becomes pregnant “unexpectedly” and as she and her boyfriend (and her mother (Elizabeth McGovern) try to work it out, she forms a bond with Jasmine who finds herself in the same boat. They form a closer bond as Samantha tries to guide Jasmine while not really knowing what she wants for herself.
I am a fan of Cobie Smulders since I came to know her as Robin in How I Met Your Mother on TV for all those years. This is probably the best role I’ve seen her get, though she’s been appearing in a lot of films since Mother ended its run. But the sad thing is that though this film is sincere and nice and feel good, it’s probably a bit simplistic. It comes off like an After School TV Special rather than a feature film. It’s got a lot of fluff tucked in there and it never really has any bite or strength. It feels a bit wishy-washy on a number of topics from feminism to racial equality to abortion, etc., but doesn’t really come down with any opinions on any of the topics. The pregnancies may be “Unexpected” but the wide eyed innocence of both characters about “How did this happen” is a bit silly. Meanwhile, there isn’t a lot of drama. On the other hand, if it WERE an After School Special, it would be an exceptionally good one. Both of the primary actors are good and they do their very best with this milquetoast of a script. It is is simple and non-stressing, so it’s an easy way to kill 90 minutes, but there’s not a lot of meat here, so it’s up to you if you want to bother with this one or not. Seems unless you are a young teenage girl you might be a bit disappointed. I’m sure it’ll be around on cable and TV soon as it’s got a really decent cast.
EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog
