Family Man, The (UK)

I didn`t have high hopes for this movie and was led to believe that it was just sentimental pap. After recently viewing the film with low expectations, I have to say I was pretty impressed!.

Okay, it`s a typical romantic comedy in some respects and the final third is a bit off-beam, but overall I found it pretty enjoyable. The script is unusually sharp for this kind of production and the dialogue is always well observed. When asked if he likes kids (by his new daughter), Cage`s character replies "on a case-by-case basis". When his former co-workers fail to recognise him he enquires "Are you smacked out of your heads?!", so the writing style is very modern/fresh and thankfully the cast do it justice.

The whole "What If" premise of the film is intriguing and full of possibilities. Although I liked it more than I expected, I`ll admit that this movie doesn`t quite fulfil it`s potential. It comes close though and I think it`s got a lot going for it- quality acting, involving plotline and good writing. I can`t quite put my finger on what`s missing, but it doesn`t seem to add up to the sum of it`s parts somehow. Maybe the direction is a little lacklustre and the ending needed to be more digestable, but there`s nothing "bad" about it as such, just some occasional under-achievement.
The disc is very good and another EIV release that has a varied array of extras aswell as the expected A/V standards. Nit-pickers will point out that the U.S disc has commentaries (which are all missing here), but you shouldn`t ignore what HAS been provided. Interviews and deleted scenes feature prominently and they`re all worth watching if you liked the film. There are some out-takes too which show Cage in a much more "normal" light and he can giggle uncontrollably just like anyone else (maybe Jeremy Piven was to blame though?!). Anyway, I`d heard bad things about the disc aswell, but I can`t see too much wrong with this selection. Admittedly it`s commentary-free, but otherwise well-rounded and mostly worth the effort.

Basically, this is a good, solid movie, with an interesting story and some good performances. It`s certainly not flawless though (and a bit overlong), but if you`re in the right mood you could really enjoy it. Try before you buy, but DO try!.