“New York Minute” (Warner Brothers)
Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen’s new movie “New York Minute” is aimed at an audience of eight year old girls. For that group the movie is perfect. For all else it is painful. If there was a thought that this film could enlarge their fan base, well think again. To be impressed by this film you have to think any action, reaction, or giggle from the “twins” is wonderful. Unfortunately most of us don’t.
Mary Kate and Ashley play Roxy and Jane Ryan, twin sisters who are totally unalike in temperament and goals. Roxy skips school and dreams of being a rock star. Jane is neat, reliable, and wants to win a scholarship to Oxford. On the day she is to give a speech for her chance to win the scholarship things take a wrong turn.
The sisters both head into New York City with Max Lomax (Eugene Levy), a truancy officer, on their heels. Along the way they meet up with Bennie Bang (Andy Richter) who offers them a free limo ride. He is really after a microchip that has been slipped inside one of their purses.
In New York City they manage to get covered in water so they sneak into an unoccupied hotel room. There they take a shower and garb themselves in bathrobes and towels. When Senator Anne Lipton (Andrea Martin) comes back to her hotel room she surprises the girls who then take to the streets in the towels and robe.
Both girls manage to find new boyfriends during the day. Jane likes the Senator’s son Trey (Jared Padalecki), while Roxy gets knocked down literally by a bike messenger named Jim (Riley Smith). Even in New York City they keep running into these guys at every turn of the corner. I guess the City isn’t that big.
Levy figured prominently in the trailers for this movie but isn’t seen that much in the film. Martin’s cameo is a waste while Richter is annoying. “SNL’s” Darrell Hammond plays another stranger they meet and he is totally not funny.
The film is rated PG for mild comic violence.
The Olsen girls are cute as can be, and they are to be commended for making a movie that their youngest fans can see. The video will probably sell a trillion copies on that fan base alone. Still it would have been nice to have had somewhat of an adult movie on screen for the rest of us. As is, “New York Minute” seemed to drag on for hours.
I scored “New York Minute” a time heavy 3 out of 10.
