Drowning Mona

Mona Dearly is a woman hated by practically everyone in this quaint, little hick town. Fortunately for everyone, she dies in a car accident early on in this film…well actually, t’was no accident…Mona’s brakes were tampered with. Unfortunately for everyone, the local police are on the hunt for the murderer, with no less than everyone in town targeted as a suspect.

A fun, diverse cast, some solid laughs, many other chuckles and smiles don’t take away from the fact that this movie lacks the consistent humor to sustain a crowd filled with angry, young whippersnappers looking for an all-out comedy fest. The movie starts off strong with plenty of successful jokes, a bevy of colorful characters (most of whom just act dumb and goofy) and a cool premise which rapidly establishes the murder mystery as the film’s prime source of business. But ultimately the film doesn’t gather much steam, lulls from point to point, and basically just bounces around from one decent joke to another lame one and then back again. So why am I still recommending it? Well, the cast is quite a hoot with every member firmly grinding their teeth into their backdoor roles, and some of the one-liners were pure hilarity (“You snooze, you lose”). Well, you had to be there. Actually, the film’s great cast is one of the things that holds it back from even greater success, since its 90 minute prescription is barely enough time to truly get to know any of them real well. It felt like there was a lot of potential in the cast, the premise and some of the jokes, but in the end, the story and the laughs just seemed to come up a little short.

Danny DeVito was one of the standouts in the cast, playing an excellent straight man in a town full of ninnies. Others in the cast weren’t so lucky, with Jamie Lee Curtis and Neve Campbell playing deadbeat parts that didn’t necessarily seem to require their specific talent. And despite her early departure from the film, Bette Midler gives us some superb mean-spirited shtuff via the consistent flashback sequences sprinkled across this movie. And then there’s Casey Affleck. Yes, Casey…not Ben. Here’s a dude whose probably best known for his dinky “friend” role in his brother’s GOOD WILL HUNTING movie, but here he is coming through as the nice, little, naïve dude with a heart. Of course, his bleach, blonde awful haircut helps him look cute and innocent, but all the same, thumbs up for little brother. And last but certainly not least, let’s not forget to mention the pathetically funny character portrayed by William Fichtner, who kicked mighty ass in last year’s GO as the cop with a penchant for homosexual innuendoes, and does another credible job as the sad-sack, loser husband in this one. All in all, the film might provide some of you with the type of entertainment that you’re looking in your night (some laughs, quick runtime, easy story), but it could also disappoint many others. I would offer a stronger recommendation for viewing this film on video, or simply advise you to lower your expectations for this movie, and try to enjoy it for all of its smaller, better points which include a solid cast, plenty of laughs that do work, and well…the fact that Bette Midler is killed in it! Happy now?

(c) 2021 Berge Garabedian