Genre: Romantic Comedy

Director: Marc Lawrence

Writer: Marc Lawrence

Cast: Hugh Grant, Sarah Jessica Parker

Running Length:  103 minutes

Opens: 7 January 2010

Synopsis: Paul (Hugh Grant) and Meryl (Sarah Jessica Parker) Morgan are a high-powered New York couple who have become estranged due to Paul’s infidelity. Unfortunately, during an attempt at reconciliation, the couple witnesses a murder and is hastily put into the Witness Protection Program when the killer makes an attempt on their lives. The Morgans are shuffled to an obscure little town in Wyoming, under the care of sheriff Clay Wheeler (Sam Elliot) and his wife Emmma (Mary Steenburgen), where they must learn to adapt to the life in a small town, and perhaps in the process save their ailing relationship.

Review: Yes, we’ve all heard about the Morgans before, but probably not by that name. This is a bog-standard romantic comedy which some audiences might feel diminishes the movie, but then again how many romantic comedies actually differ from the norm? As always, the success of a romantic comedy depends on the chemistry of the leads, and the various situations they find themselves in.

Both Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker are essentially replaying roles they have done many, many times before – Hugh Grant with his self-deprecating “Britishness” and a whole slew of witty repartees, and Sarah Jessica Parker basically channeling Sex and the City’s iconic Carrie Bradshaw.

The fish-out-of-water plot has also been around the block more than a few times, usually bearing little (if any) surprises, but in Morgans the foreshadowing is particularly blatant. It gets to the point where one must actually make the conscious effort not to think ahead of the plot so as not to feel too bored by the proceedings.

However, the chemistry between Parker and Grant is decent, and the film does contain more than a few laugh-out-loud moments (and many other moments which are rather amusing – particularly the many one liners delivered by Hugh Grant). It may not feel fresh in any way, but fans of romantic comedies , Hugh Grant, or Sarah Jessica Parker would definitely still find the movie a rather enjoyable one.

Rating: * * ½ (out of four stars)