The Rewrite: DVD Review
Arriving this week on Blu-ray and DVD is the new comedy “The Rewrite”, which stars Hugh Grant, Marisa Tomei, Allison Janney, Chris Elliot, and J.K. Simmons. This is the fourth film from writer/director Marc Lawrence, which stars Grant. They previously worked together on “Two Weeks Notice”, “Music & Lyrics”, and “Did You Hear About the Morgans?” Aside from the dreadful “Morgans”, the Lawrence/Grant films have been quite enjoyable and “The Rewrite” is no exception.
Keith Michaels (Grant) hasn’t written a successful screenplay in nearly fifteen years. Unable to find a job writing anything in Hollywood, he resorts to taking a job as a guest screenwriting professor at an upstate New York university. Needless to say, Michaels does not want to be there. The newly appointed teacher begins his new job with one bad decision after another. An inappropriate relationship with a student (Bella Heathcote) and offending fellow professor and head of the ethics committee (Janney) are just a few of his missteps.
Things begin to change when Michaels develops a friendship with Holly (Tomei), a single mother of three, who also happens to be taking his class. Pretty much calling him out on his B.S., Holly helps Michaels become a better teacher. He also begins to see the potential in his students.
I very much enjoyed “The Rewrite” and the cast is definitely what helps sell it. Having Simmons and Elliott in the supporting cast just makes it that much better. If you are a fan of the previous films Grant has worked on with Laurence then you will no doubt enjoy this one.
By: Marc Ferman