What Women Want

Ever wonder what it is that women want? Mel Gibson, Helen Hunt and Marisa Tomei seek to answer this proverbial question in the comedy of the same name. And they come close, but in the end fall short of this woman's expectations.\n Nick Marshall (Gibson) is a chauvinist passed over for a job in favor of wonder girl Darcy McGuire (Hunt). When he is accidentally electrocuted, he acquires the power to hear the thoughts of women. Nick thinks this is the perfect opportunity to impress his boss, played by the hilarious Alan Alda, and kick Darcy to the curb. That is, until he falls in love with her.\n Gibson is absolutely hilarious as Nick, a man trying to find out what makes a woman tick. It is fun to watch, as he foolishly believes that he is God's gift, only to hear what women really think. He provides the heart of this movie, and it is stunning to watch his transformation on screen. It is too bad the women could not be as wonderful as he is.\n Hunt is on par as Darcy, but those little questions can only go off in her head so many times before her performance is stale. Tomei is, at best, lukewarm in her role as Lola, the lusty wannabe actress. This woman won an Academy Award for her role in "My Cousin Vinny" and all she can seem to play is idiots.\n This film allows us to see the relationships men sometimes have with women, everything from the ex-wife to the girlfriend to the daughter. For her part, Ashley Johnson (better known as Chrissy on television's "Growing Pains") is marvelous as Nick's teenage daughter. Torn between her father's new personality and the dad that was never there, Johnson plays the role with the right amount of contempt, humor and pain.\n "What Women Want" is entertaining, until director Nancy Meyers thinks we have seen enough and, as fast as you can say zero to 60, she takes the audience rocketing to a predictable and horribly contrived ending.\n So what do women want? Director Nancy Meyers thinks it is Mel Gibson, a few laughs and predictability. Two out of three aren't bad.