Serving Sara, Unfortunately, Unmemorable!
Serving Sara
Rated PG-13 * Now Playing
Carol's grade: C+
THE PLOT:
Joe (Matthew Perry) hates his job, but makes a good living as a down-and-dirty process server in New York. His boss, Ray (Cedric the Entertainer) fuels a mutual dislike between Joe and co-worker Tony (Vincent Pastore) to see which guy can do the most for the company.
Sara's (Elizabeth Hurley) millionaire rancher husband has filed for divorce in his native Texas. He hires Ray to serve her with the papers in New York. Joe and Tony compete to see who can get to Sara first.
Eventually, Joe succeeds.
Sara is stunned that her spouse has filed for divorce. But, she's even more surprised when Joe tells her that Texas law may leave her with little monetary reward from her marriage.
Too bad she didn't file first, Joe tells her. New York divorce laws practically ensure that she'd get half of everything.
So, Sara offers Joe a million bucks to pretend he never served her. He, in turn, agrees to serve papers on her husband before Tony can find and serve Sara.
CAROL'S TAKE:
Comedies are often pretty simple. Even with a host of twists and turns, they can leave little to the imagination. Still, the good ones establish credible characters that make the movies fun, and memorable, too.
"Serving Sara" is both ordinary and predictable. While it boasts some bright moments, it also suffers from feeble ones. Ultimately, the movie relies on the actor's efforts to make or break the project. Sadly, unevenness is a problem here, too.
Hurley's Sara is impossible to define. She is very slick, but nothing more than surface. Both the actress and the character seem to be completely without depth. And, neither one is even remotely funny. What a disappointment.
Perry does a much job better as Joe. He appealingly conveys humor and vulnerability - all the while avoiding any "Chandler-isms" that could have made his work seem like a rerun. Supporting him, funny men Cedric the Entertainer and Pastore are just fine in their cartoon character-type roles.
But, a successful comedy must be more than the sum of its parts, and "Serving Sara" is not. While this movie sometimes serves up the goods, it remains, in the end, unmemorable.
© 2002 Webster-Kirkwood Times, Inc.
Movie reviews by Carol Hemphill and Kent Tentschert
reelworld@timesnewspapers.com