The Makeover (2013) Reviews

• The makeover was sweet.

  cindb4512013-01-30

  I have to confess I began watching with my son because I worked as background but I found myself forgetting about that and just smiling.. You have a sweet family movie with a moral center, talented and very smart actors. It wasn't preachy but fun... It made you think but not in a negative way. I loved the use of Boston landmarks in this. We need more movies like this. Yes Boston does have people who talk and act that way. Boston is filled with a diverse population and this movie just sampled a small part of it. Yes I love my zombie flicks as well but this is a nice breath of fresh air.. BTW everyone onset was nice and very professional.

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• Shooting in Boston

  boblipton2013-02-05

  This sex-change version of George Bernard Shaw's PYGMALION (best known in its musical version of MY FAIR LADY) seems a trifle tired. It works best when it moves furthest from its source; the standout character is Elliot Doolittle's sister, although Frances Fisher as his mother is obviously having a lot of fun with the bowdlerized version of Alfie Doolittle. Julia Stiles as Higgins seems to be clueless about how things actually work and David Walton as Elliot seems to go from a mush-mouthed Southie to someone whose greatest problem with language seems to be when to use "whom" without much struggle. However, it's a great story and despite a few missteps in the script -- intended to make it fit the standard Hallmark romcom format -- it has some great moments of actual comedy. If, unlike its original, it does not start out all head and let the emotions of the matter sneak in later, that is a choice I can understand. One particularly praiseworthy fact is that there are a lot of shots that show how clearly this one is set in Boston, and not just the typical setting shots, but real places that someone familiar with the city would choose. I always take special pleasure in seeing things like that in a movie.

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• It's all about character - MAJOR SPOILERS HERE

  joywriter192014-01-27

  David Walton plays a delightful 'heart of gold' young man with a keen sense for people. Julia Stiles plays a smart, razor-edged-personality politician who lives in her head. She is a judgmental young woman. It amazes me John Gray, the director, was blind to the 'heroine's' lack of character growth. He didn't show her changing despite her being warned by others who love her. That's all the movie needed to make it heart-warming and worth caring about. It makes no sense that Walton's character fell in love with her. Her mean-spiritedness is endless. She doesn't feel others pain at her sarcastic, hurtful comments or their hurts and losses. She never truly apologizes. It's a disheartening movie, in that a wonderful, talented young man attaches himself to a smart, driven woman who lacks empathy and emotional self-awareness. I found it a downer to watch. Julia Stiles deserved a better vehicle for her acting talent and she ought to have fought for a more teachable, lovable character. Walton ought to have demanded that, too, for his own character's sake. Camryn Manheim, too, was funny, played a good friend to Stiles, but didn't demand enough change, either. A waste of a decent plot.

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• The Makeover - Light and Funny

  drudge12014-03-02

  The Makeover is itself a remake of George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and the musical version of that play, My Fair Lady, but with an interesting twist; the genders of the main characters in the film have been switched. Set in Boston, The Makeover takes much of its initial energy from the contrast between the varied dialects used by the upper and lower classes of that city's population. The film is a fun romantic comedy that is reasonably well acted and photographed. It could have been improved by continuing the musical score through the fades between scenes instead of leaving them silent, but this probably was not considered practical with a made for TV movie.

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• Adorable and funny

  vchimpanzee2013-03-25

  I was in the hospital and high on drugs when I saw this. That also explains my delay in reviewing it since during my recovery I had limited time online and there were other priorities. Even though it felt like I was dreaming this episode, I still remember some details. David Walton did a very good Boston accent and he was quite appealing as an obviously blue-collar character. And yet Elliot wanted more from life than just delivering beer. An executive position was open in his company, and the uptight but still adorable Hannah tricked him into letting her train him to talk and act properly for that position. Only her goal was to replace the deceased congressman she had wanted to see elected. Elliot did very well in his transition to a sophisticated executive, but did he want the job of congressman? Well, you'll just have to watch for yourself. And there appears to be romantic potential here as well. Not quite up to the usual Hallmark Hall of Fame standards, but it would have made a very good Lifetime movie.

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