Finally getting back to my long list of backlogged movie reviews to write.
In my first flight to Vancouver, I ended up watching an always wonderful Mary Poppins (which I don’t think I reviewed yet oddly) and the very mind-boggling Enemy (review HERE). After that whole transfer and running to catch my transfer, I finally had a very empty 12 hour flight to Hong Kong. It was great stuff because I got to stretch out and enjoy a few movies comfortably. If Enemy taught me anything, its that I needed to watch something less intense. As I shifted through the many more selections on the long haul flights, I landed on Canadian productions and The Right Kind of Wrong. I’m sure a lot of us has wondered how Ryan Kwanten will do nNOT being the idiot in the form of Jason Stackhouse. Of course, there was Dead Silence before this, which I reviewed HERE! Horror is not my forte so I can’t judge his acting from that but rom-coms are totally in my ballpark so I was excited.
Let’s check it out! 🙂
Director: Jeremiah Chechik
Cast: Ryan Kwanten, Sara Canning, Ryan McPartlin, Kristen Hager, Catherine O’Hara
Leo (Ryan Kwanten), a recently divorced dishwasher who is ridiculed by his ex-wife’s, Julie (Kristen Hager) success by launching a blog called “Why You Suck” about his flaws and shortcomings when they were together. Refusing to look at these “obviously” false accusations, he lives life by himself the best he can until one day, he meets Colette (Sara Canning), a soon to be wed girl at her wedding. He crashes it and professes his love for her, pointing out that he is in fact the right man for her. The pursuit continues after the marriage is finalize even after the resistance of Colette’s husband (Ryan McPartlin). The question now is will he succeed in letting Colette see what he does?
Romantic comedies are almost always formulaic but regardless, the successful ones will pull out that feel good element with the right characters and the decent premise and even the good enough humor to keep the audience watching. The Right Kind of Wrong is definitely not the best romantic comedy I’ve seen (Rotten Tomatoes rating would say that its horrible), but I’ve also seen much worse. There is nothing wrong with being a dreamer and as outrageous as the premise of this is and probably wrong on many levels for wanting to be the cause of a divorce. There are certain aspects that I did like quite a bit.
What is fresh about The Right Kind of Wrong is the idea of a man chasing after an woman and doing absolutely stupid things. Most of the time, its the other way around. Most rom-coms are about some woman being the love-crazed person that tries to find her love and does some desperate thing. I appreciate the premise this one was putting out even if it was a little out there. Leo Palamino was technically nearing the behaviors of a stalker because he would track down how to approach Colette but at the same time, Colette is a married woman so to start by trying to change her mind is already a wrong thing. I’m guessing thats why you have The Right Kind of Wrong to justify the movie title.
Aside from the unusual premise, it was also filmed in the very beautiful Banff in Alberta, Canada. The scenery and the setting was simply lovely to look at. With its hills, mountains and nature, it really was a treat to watch.
I’m not going to hate on this one despite its absurdity at times. The story had a fresh attempt and it did give me a few laughs here and there, the cast was who won me over. Ryan Kwanten was pretty good at being Leo Palomino. He was a guy that did a lot of weird stuff to get a girl but between all that, he also went through an awakening of his own. Well, its normal and expected because he’s just doing the exact same thing a girl in a romantic comedy would. Still, I thought it was entertaining to watch at the very least and I think he brought a lot more life to his character Leo than maybe the script even would’ve had.
Next up are the lovely ladies in this movie. Our leading lady is Sara Canning. I could not remember where I had seen her before while I watching this one (and I keep blanking out). *checks IMDB* Right, she was in Vampire Diaries for a few seasons. I think the best part of this one was Sara Canning. She’s a pretty good actress all on her own. She brings some good charisma to her character as Colette. Moving right along, who can ignore the brief role of Catherine O’Hara as Colette’s mother. Honestly, she has some of the most awkward but pretty funny lines in this one. Her appearance, her encouragement to Leo and her re-bonding with her daughter brought on a bit of humor and I think I grew to like her character a lot.
Overall, I’m not saying this is a full-on winner and more than a month later as I write this up, I’m not even sure I remember everything that went on (which isn’t usually a good thing) but I do remember my feelings towards it. Maybe it was being trapped in a flight that made me enjoy this more than I probably would but I thought The Right Kind of Wrong was okay. It gave me a feel laughs, a nice setting and some engaging cast. It kind of lost its steam nearing the end when things got a little predictable but it still has a charm.
Just remember, romantic comedies are pretty much, comedies so they can’t please everyone easily unless you like its humor. But I’m sure you all know it already 🙂
Did you see The Right Kind of Wrong? Did you think it was more right or wrong? What do you think of Ryan Kwanten?
I don’t know if it happens to other people but writing reviews for romantic comedies get a little challenging after writing a whole bunch. A lot of times, its not so much to look at. No Reservations was one that I enjoyed. It was surprisingly fun to watch and although there was emphasis on food, the story itself was pretty formulaic and predictable. I’m not saying thats a problem for me but that is a flaw that most romantic comedies tend to have. Just being objective. While it was an extremely simple story, the cast really made this a lot better than what it should be. Looking at the cast, can you doubt any of their skills? I’m not such a connoisseur of Catherine Zeta-Jones but she is a classy lady. Aaron Eckhart has been an increasing favorite and lets not even get me started on my personal favorite of Abigail Breslin. And although Patricia Clarkson has only supporting roles most times, I can’t remember one that I didn’t like.
Tranquil Dreams 