Dating-savvy single girls, Christina Walters (Cameron Diaz, “Vanilla Sky”) and Courtney (Christina Applegate, “Just Visiting”) are searching for “Mr. Right Now” in the new comedy “The Sweetest Thing.” Notorious players, they slide past long lines at clubs, woo men and then drop them before calling — leaving a trail of broken hearts.
To heal the broken heart of their roommate Jane (Selma Blair, “Storytelling”), the girls take her out for a night of dancing and drinking. As Christina and Courtney hit the dance floor, men circle around them, only to be rejected. Christina is dancing it up, turning men away, until she gets put in her place by a cute guy (Thomas Jane). This turn of events creates an attraction — she must have him.
But she misses her chance, and he is gone. So, with a tiny amount of information, the two set off on a quasi road trip to find the dream guy.
Too bad for Jane, who gets left at home and spends the rest of the movie in one humiliating sex position after another. She even has a Monica Lewinsky moment with a borrowed dress when she brings it in to the drycleaner (at least she had the good sense) and runs into her grade school teacher and priest.
Diaz, Applegate and Blair are hilarious. Getting in one clich? situation after another, they bounce back from their minor setbacks with crude jokes.
Diaz has joked in interviews and on SNL that she is always dancing in her movies — each has a cameo of her butt — and if you are a fan, you won’t be disappointed with her booty shakes.
Applegate has a new look from her “Married With Children” days. She has darker hair, which means less blond and objectification jokes. The movie might be a step back from the stereotype she has been desperately trying to escape.
And poor Blair. Is she ever going to land a role where she isn’t awkward or the brunt of jokes?
“The Sweetest Thing” isn’t brilliant. It is a mindless comedy with jokes about boobs, sex and being single. It would make any girl eager to get out and be flirty.
Parker Posey (“The Anniversary Party”) even does a funny cameo as the cute guy’s bride-to-be, who doesn’t want to get married.
The film kicks the stereotype that women are prude and innocent. Instead, director Roger Kumble (“Cruel Intentions”) shows the world of oversexed women — the female swinger.
While the film calls itself a romantic comedy “without the sugar,” don’t be fooled. There is very little romance and a lot more crude jokes — think more “American Pie” than “Sleepless in Seattle.”
Some of writer Nancy Pimental’s jokes are recycled. In one scene, for example, Christina and Courtney are trying on outfits in a store when one of them exclaims, “Do we have time for a movie montage?”
And then they do it.
Grade: B
