Film Review

By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

My One and Only
Directed by Richard Loncraine
Universal Studios/Alliance Films 08/09 DVD/VHS Feature Film
PG-13 - sexual content, language

Ann Devereaux (Renee Zellweger) returns to her New York City apartment to find Dan (Kevin Bacon) having sex with another woman. It is not the first betrayal but it is the one that tells her to leave her hedonistic band-leader husband. She decides to purchase a new Cadillac Eldorado and hit the road to find a mature man to take care of her and her two sons. She also hopes to make up for not being a very attentive mother over the years. Robbie (Mark Rendall) is gay and wants to be an actor; George (Logan Lerman) is a serious lad who thinks he has the right stuff to be a writer.

In Boston, it isn't long before Ann hitches up with Harlan (Chris Noth), a rough and tough military man who looks forward to straightening out her two wayward sons. But his propensity for violence sends the Devereauxs fleeing to Pittsburgh where Ann, a former high society lady, wants to catch the eye of an old acquaintance, Charlie Correll (Eric McCormack). But she soon gets the message that he is only really interested in young and beautiful women who photograph well.

George begins to tire of moving from one city to the next and berates his mother for being so selfish. In a telling scene, he asks her to name his favorite color or the book he has been reading and talking about all the time. Ann fails the test. Of course, a reconciliation with his father, who spends most of his time on the road, falls flat as well.

My One and Only is directed by Richard Loncraine (Wimbledon) based on a witty screenplay by Charlie Peters. Logan Lerman as the youthful George Hamilton carries the film and serves as narrator. Renee Zellweger as Ann, the middle-aged blonde Southern belle, is not an appealing character but she creates the friction that enables her youngest son to find his voice and ultimate vocation. He comes to respect his mother's determination and dreams in the face of aging and limited possibilities.

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by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat