Ventures into Woody Allen territory but never quite captures the wit or wistfulness.
Prime (2005)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:115
Fresh:56
Rotten:59
Average Rating:5.6/10
Consensus: Though Streep is dependably terrific in her role, the rest of the movie is too sitcom-ish, and the romance itself is dull.
Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for sexual content including dialogue, and for language
Runtime: 1 hr 46 mins
Genre: Romance, Theatrical Release
Theatrical Release:Oct 28, 2005 Wide
Box Office: $22,728,025
Synopsis: New York City forms the backdrop for writer/director Ben Younger's (BOILER ROOM) PRIME, a gentle comedy that weaves a tale of two lovers trying to keep the flame alive as an unusual obstacle is... New York City forms the backdrop for writer/director Ben Younger's (BOILER ROOM) PRIME, a gentle comedy that weaves a tale of two lovers trying to keep the flame alive as an unusual obstacle is hurled in their path. Rafi Gardet (Uma Thurman) is a newly divorced 37-year-old career woman who regularly spills her woes to her therapist, Lisa Metzger (Meryl Streep). Rafi's love life takes a sudden upturn when she meets Bryan Greenberg (David Bloomberg), a penniless painter who lives on the Lower East Side with his grandparents and, at 23, is significantly younger than Rafi. Uptown girl Rafi isn't used to such differences in age and location, but the sex is great, and Bryan seems attentive enough, so she jubilantly tells Lisa in passionate detail about their blossoming relationship. The trouble is, the more Rafi tells her, the more Lisa realizes that the hot young boy-toy Rafi is busy seducing on a nightly basis is, in fact, her own son. The problems mount, with Rafi's status as a gentile not going over well with Bryan's Jewish family, and Lisa unable to decide whether to stop the therapy sessions or not. Younger delivers a heady mixture of laughs and salient points in a film that settles snugly into familiar early-21st-century territory for romantic-comedy fans. He peppers the action with product placement, warm pastel colors in spacious FRIENDS-style New York apartments, and bitter recriminations that quickly turn to passionate makeup sex on more than one occasion. The director clearly enjoys a love affair with the city, with swooping shots throughout of the late-night Manhattan skyline providing the perfect setting as his two leads act out their bittersweet union. [More]
Starring: Uma Thurman, Meryl Streep, Bryan Greenberg, Jon Abrahams
Starring: Uma Thurman, Meryl Streep, Bryan Greenberg, Jon Abrahams, Zak Orth
Director: Ben Younger
Director: Ben Younger
Screenwriter: Ben Younger
Producer: Jennifer Todd, Suzanne Todd
Studio: Universal Pictures
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Reviews for Prime
it quickly becomes a one-note joke with exactly the same punch line every five or ten minutes
A pleasing balance between romantic moments...and humor-focused scenes that feel fresh, even if often treading on familiar territory
Abrahams and Streep simply steal a movie dominated by two less interesting characters.
Not quite a romance by numbers, Prime is nevertheless a movie we need like a hole in the head.
With its ambiguous title and tepid love story, the only thing going for Prime is Meryl Streep.
The only real saving grace in the movie -- to the extent that it has one -- is Streep, whose scenes with Thurman zing with a breezy, passive-aggressive delight.
Greenberg comes off as dull, which is ironic considering he excelled on Unscripted as a struggling actor who lands a big role opposite Meryl Streep and Uma Thurman.
If Younger truly wanted to work out some fantasies on the big screen, Prime is the dullest, most unimaginative way he could've achieved that goal.
[Younger] turns what could have been a silly romp into something bigger and more beautiful, something that embraces both laughter and tears.
Ironically, this therapeutic romantic comedy ultimately suffers from too many unexplored issues.
Something about the way it ends feels like a cop-out, and the opportunities for humor aren't exploited quite as well as they could be.
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