“Waitress” (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
A Is For Adultery
“Waitress” is a movie that presents a new take on the “Cinderella” story. In this movie Cinderella is looking for her Prince Charming. The only problems is that Cinderella is married and so is Prince Charming, so living happily ever after means breaking up two marriages or living in an adulterous situation. Even a fairy godmother couldn’t figure this one out!
Jenna (Keri Russell) works as a waitress in a pie diner. Whenever she gets depressed with her life she creates a new pie recipe in her mind. She has a lot to be depressed about. She is married to a lout named Earl (Jeremy Sisto) and she just found out she is pregnant. She is not a happy camper.
Her two best friends and co-waitresses, Dawn (Adrienne Shelley) and Becky (Cheryl Hines), try to console her. She decides to keep the baby but she still isn’t happy about it. She instructs her doctor (Nathan Fillion) not to offer congratulations. He is a new doctor in town and before she leaves his office they are romantically involved.
Jenna’s best customer Joe (Andy Griffith) also tries to console her. She is the only one who can tolerate his cranky ways, but he seems to genuinely like her. He tells her some of his life story while he listens to hers.
All of the characters in the movie are quirky, and all the situations seem extreme. None of it seems to be new in any way, or insightful. And when the ending roles around it is so cliched you almost groan.
Russell is fresh-faced and appealing as Jenna. She is the best thing in the movie. Fillion is bland as her loving doctor, but Sisto is pure venom as Earl. Adrienne Shelley is spunky as Dawn while Cheryl Hines is world weary as Becky.
Shelley not only co-stars in the film but also directed and wrote the script. Tragically she was murdered before the movie was released adding an even more bittersweet flavor to the film.
The movie is rated PG-13 for profanity and sexual situations.
“Waitress” is a movie that has charm because of its quirkiness but the story does not hold up and the characters are paper thin. It’s a fairy tale like “Cinderella” with more adult situations.
I scored “Waitress” a leftover 5 out of 10.
