Playing For Keeps Review

He shoots, he misses-Jessica Biel, Noah Lomax and Gerald Butler as a family at odds in Playing For Keeps
                                                 Playing For Keeps is a severely misguided attempt. It is a film that thinks if a man sleeps with many women, betrays his son and ruins his ex-wife's new relationship---we should still root for him. Why this film has these thoughts I will never know. It is a truly dreadful film featuring both unappealing and appealing actors all doing equally unappealing things.

                                                 The film stars Gerald Butler---quite possibly the worst working actor in Hollywood as George Dryer---a former soccer king whose life has gone down the tubes. The audience is supposed to wonder what went wrong but we can answer that question immediately. George's wife Stacie (Jessica Biel) left him and his kid Lewis (Noah Lomax) is not his biggest fan either. George's quick solution is to sleep with the moms of all the kids on Lewis's soccer team. Among the actors playing these women are Judy Greer, Catherine Zeta Jones and Uma Thurman. Dennis Quaid is a fellow dad who looks up to George for God knows why. Barring Butler and Biel to some extent, every actor in this film is talented. However, they are all making jokes of their careers by being in this film. Even Lomax---his first appearance on the silver screen obviously has potential.  Why are these actors in this film?

                                                  Perhaps they saw director Gabriele Muccino get an excellent performance out of Will Smith in The Pursuit of Happyness. Perhaps they saw writer Robbie Fox's surprisingly funny So I Married An Axe Murderer. Even after writing these two sentences---I can still not place my finger on why anyone thought this sappy, incoherent, unfunny, completely cliched and predictable romantic comedy would be a good idea...at all. Butler is a terrible actor and drags everyone else down with him. It seems now that everyone in this film is in the same boat as Butler.

                                                 Don't see Playing For Keeps. I really mean this statement. Don't watch it in the theater or if they are giving away free copies on the street. And yes---the cast and crew of this shameful film will probably end up having to give away free copies at some point and for good reason. Everyone involved in the making of this project should be ashamed of themselves...it totally reeks.
(0 out of 5 Stars, The film is rated PG-13 for some sexual situations, language and a brief intense image)