“Intolerable Cruelty”

By David DiCerto
Catholic News Service

NEW YORK (CNS) -- A slick divorce lawyer and a foxy gold digger discover that all's fair in love and palimony in the darkly funny, albeit unorthodox, romantic comedy "Intolerable Cruelty" (Universal).

Full of whip-smart repartee and eccentric characters, Joel and Ethan Coen's zany take on the litigiousness of modern romance uses the paddle of satire to navigate cynical thematic waters in order to arrive at its conclusion that love is nonnegotiable.

George Clooney plays Miles Massey, a suave, high-priced Beverly Hills attorney with a perfect track record and flawless teeth to match. The marital infidelities of his well-heeled clients and his own knack for "massaging" the kinks out of testimonies have made Massey a rich man -- rich enough to have a running tab at the Mercedes dealership.

Yet underneath Massey's well-manicured charm and laser-whitened incisors is the gnawing realization that he is miserably unfulfilled. Of course, these pangs of conscience fade like crow's feet at a Bel Air Botox clinic when Massey is retained by Rex Rexroth (Edward Herrmann), a philandering shopping mall magnate with a train fetish, caught with his hands on the caboose of a floozy half his age. Massey gets Rexroth off without a settlement, leaving his conniving wife Marylin (Catherine Zeta-Jones) -- who only married him for his money -- hanging out to dry.

But hell hath no scorn like a woman cut off from her tycoon husband's millions. Using her feminine wiles, Marylin sets in motion a revenge scheme aimed at exacting a pound of well-tanned flesh from Massey. Massey is only too willing to be brought to the cleaners since he has been after Marylin's, er, assets from the get-go. The only problem is neither figured on falling in love.

What appears at first to be an irreverent lampooning of marriage ends up being an affirmation of the marital union as a bond built on love and trust rather than as an opportunity for financial gain. The Coens' playful use of double-speak legalese -- with its inherent cynicism -- only serves to expose it as nonsense.

Using the wrecking ball of comedy, the filmmakers demolish the wall of prenup poppycock that has been erected around matrimony and that acts to shackle vows in contractual claptrap. And though the offbeat road chosen by the Coens is paved with pitch-black wit, the film makes a strong case that marriage is not a legal agreement but an act of love -- one ordained by the laws of the heart, not the laws of Los Angeles County.

This bright view of marriage is contrasted not only by the superficiality of Marylin's fellow diva divorcees, but by the money-grubbing petulance of Herb Myerson (Tom Aldredge), the cadaverous senior partner of Massey's firm.

On a less lighthearted note, the film contains one scene that pushes the envelope of comical good taste in which a dull-witted asthmatic hit man named Wheezy Joe (Irwin Keyes) whacks himself when he mistakes his gun for his inhaler-pump.

The impossibly good-looking Clooney and Zeta-Jones are form-fitted to the roles, lighting up the screen with a capricious chemistry reminiscent of Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn. And while Clooney mugs his way through many of the scenes, his quirky performance seems in tune with the kooky tenor of the film.

Given Catholic teaching concerning the indissolubility of marriage, the Coens' farcical treatment of divorce -- as well as their off-color brand of humor -- may prove off-putting to some viewers. Still, this "Cruelty" is anything but intolerable.

Due to a comedic view of divorce, some sexual humor, brief violence, and an instance of rough language, as well as sporadic crude language and profanity, the USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-IV -- adults, with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

* DiCerto is on the staff of the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.