A goofy loner encounters the Devil, who grants him
seven wishes, all with disastrous consequences. COMEDY/FANTASY
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Bedazzled (2000)Directed by Harold Ramis
Written by Larry Gelbart, Harold Ramis, Peter Tolan Starring Brendan Fraser, Elizabeth Hurley, Frances O'Connor, Miriam Shor, Orlando Jones, Paul Adelstein, Toby Huss Remake of 1967's Bedazzled |
I've never seen the original 1967 comedy, but I did grow up with the remake. Bedazzled was part of my childhood DVD collection, and I've clearly always appreciated the work of Brendan Fraser and to a lesser extent, Elizabeth Hurley. They work delightfully well together in this decent remake that retells the age-old story of "Be careful what you wish for." It's got its problems, sure, but it's a fun watch that seems to get better with each viewing, apart from the severely homophobic wish that's just hard to watch now.
Elliot Richards (Fraser) is, simply put, a dork. He has no friends, and he's the guy at work who's so annoying that you take the long way to your desk just to avoid talking to him. His coworker Alison (O'Connor) is the girl of his dreams, but she doesn't even notice him. One night out, he encounters a smoking hot woman with a serious mean streak, who introduces herself as the Devil (Hurley). Lucifer offers Elliot seven wishes in exchange for his mortal soul, but each wish has a serious caveat that makes the whole thing completely worthless. Elliot wishes for wealth and becomes a Colombian drug lord. He wishes for athletic prowess and becomes a basketball star with a tiny, um, ego. He wishes for intelligence and respect, but he's gay. In 2000, that was apparently a massive dealbreaker. You see where I'm going with this. Each wish has its own hilarious moments, but there's ultimately one thing holding the film back. Bedazzled absolutely needed to be rated 'R.' It feels very held back, and despite Fraser and Hurley's performances and chemistry, you can sense that the film needs something else to be complete. Still, it's a bit of a fun time capsule for 2000. |