Easily the most lightweight and fluffy romantic comedy I've seen in a while - 'View' is sadly also quite empty with hardly any laughs, a terribly cliched romance subplot, and just plain nothing going on. Its strength will be to young girls seeking an empowerment fable - the material is perfectly family friendly and those young-uns dreaming of a better life than this will really get a rewarding feeling out of it. They're also the few that won't mind the weaker points in this whether it be the cliched and almost oppressive voice over, to the awkward editing which goes here, there and everywhere. All audiences though will be wondering what time period its set in as the hairdos, costumes, and music tracks range from 60's bouffants and eye makeup to 80's music hits even if its set in what is apparently the present day.
Paltrow never successfully pulls off the 'realising her destiny' tale - not only is she unconvincing as a teen, but her penchant for laughs isn't on display in this 'regular joe' style comedy which is more suited to co-star Christina Applegate who does well as the pseudo 'bitchy foil' character. Paltrow is not helped by Mark Ruffalo who lacks any sense of on-screen charm or chemistry with the icy blonde.
Mike Myers steals the movie though as the strangely eyed flight school headmaster and does his usual mugging 'desperate for a laugh' schtick which on its own normally isn't enough but buried under this pile it shines like a diamond (as shown in the outtakes at the end). Candice Bergin as Paltrow's mentor like boss is so sweet its scary, had she a little more fire it would have been a far more rewarding role for the actress. The rest of the cast comes and goes and even these characters disappear for lengths at a time whilst cameos from the likes of Marc Blucas, Kelly Preston and Rob Lowe sink.
At just over 80 minutes there's not much time to explore anything serious other than cat fights and high schooler level storytelling - from its 'love vs. career' decision of the main character to the eventual fate of her friends, everything in this is cliched in the extreme and predictable to a head slapping end. Its no surprise to learn the script was penned as part of a class assignment from some film student, and Brazillian Director Bruno Baretto shows he also has little sense for timing or material in this very American story.
What few charms come from the screwed up production values - whether it be the amazing stewardess outfits of Paltrow's first carrier, to the quirky moments including a dance to Bon Jovi's seminal classic "Livin' on a Prayer". Paltrow, despite all you may think of her, deserves far better than this. A comedy which wouldn't even fly on videoven fly on video.
