Blonde Ambition

Year of Release: 2007
Genre: Comedy / Romance
Rating: PG-13 for some sexual material.
Director: Scott Marshall
Starring: Jessica Simpson, Luke Wilson, Rachael Leigh Cook, Penelope Ann Miller, Andy Dick, Willie Nelson, Larry Miller

Date Of Review: February 2008

Hey look, it’s “Legally Blonde 3” with Jessica Simpson and Luke Wilson, oops no it’s not; it would be criminal to compare this with that franchise. Does a film like this really need an introduction? It has the word Blonde in the title and it stars Jessica Simpson, so what do you really expect? The tagline of the DVD cover states “Small-town girl. Big-time dreams”. Heck, if Jessica had only played a singer in the film this could almost be autobiographical. Maybe the tagline should have been “Big-time girl. Small-time film”.  In “Blonde Ambition” Jessica’s dad is played by none-other than country and western legend  Willie Nelson, maybe if the film had of revolved around the music industry, with Willie as her mentor, this could have really been something. The two could have even done a duet? I might be getting off the track here, but I don’t think “Blonde Ambition” has used any of the talent on offer to their full potential.

After “The Dukes of Hazzard” (2005) and “Employee Of The Month” (2006), it was only a matter of time before Jessica Simpson would be given her first full-fledged starring role; sadly “Blonde Ambition” is it. “The Secret Of My Success” meets “Legally Blonde” in this light-hearted romantic comedy that goes pretty much nowhere fast. It’s a ditzy film with a ditzy blonde in the lead. The plot revolves around small-town hick, Jessica, heading off to the big smoke to track down her wannabe-model fiancé. Along the way she lands a secretarial job with a construction firm. “Blonde Ambition” has good intentions and presents the viewer with a “fish-out-of-water” scenario but unfortunately it doesn’t take full advantage of the premise. The film is fairly juvenile and should appeal to Jessica’s younger fans only. Jokes range from Jessica belching after a good meal and stating “papa say’s that complements to the cook” to sight gags such as Jessica crashing her bike in a ditch on a construction site. You will also cringe when Jessica takes some Norwegian businessman out on the town, she doesn’t know their dialect, yet still manages to clinch a multi-million dollar deal by simply taking them to a Karaoke bar! And guess what? Jessica doesn’t even take part in the singing. What a shame!

I never thought I would say this but supporting actor Larry Miller is probably the best thing about this film. There I have said it, Larry Miller steals the film.  You know a film is struggling when the best thing about it is the support. He plays Jessica’s boss, a man with a tough exterior but ultimately a softie with a big heart. He claims he’s overworked but it’s almost as if he disorganizes his desk with scattered files and paperwork just to feel important. It’s a role Larry is well suited for, just like his role as Julia Stiles’ father in “10 Things I Hate About You” (1999). An unshaven Luke Wilson, credited here as the second lead, unfortunately sleepwalks through the proceedings. He was much better used in the “Legally Blonde” films and it’s hard to understand why he signed up for this one when he is given so very little to do. Maybe, there wasn’t much on offer at the time or maybe he did it as a favor for Simpson, or maybe he thought I have played second fiddle to a blonde before with some degree of suceess so what the heck I'll do it again. Whatever the case, Luke Wilson is little more than a name on the case cover in this one.     

Jessica Simpson tries very hard and has a likeable screen presence but sadly the disposable plotline and the poor script are as weak as water and drag everything down.  It’s nice to see Jessica try comedy, something for which she is suited for but for Jessica to become a “major movie star” she will have to find some projects considerably more distinguished than this. By the way, the title of Jessica’s next movie is “Major Movie Star”, a “Private Benjamin” type-comedy, co-starring Police Academy’s Steve Guttenberg, of all people. It is not yet known whether that film will hit cinemas or DVD shelves like this one, whatever the case may be, I suppose there will always be a market for this kind of ditz. “Blonde Ambition” gets a 1 for effort and that’s just for Jessica and the outfits, sorry I almost forgot…..and Larry Miller in support as the Boss. That's right, it's a three-way-split for the 1 star rating, Jessica, the outfits and the boss. If Willie Nelson had of only sung a mighty-pretty-tune, "Blonde Ambition" would surely have jumped up another 1/2 star and a duet with Jessica may have even pushed the total to 2 stars and a fair rating, but as they say, you can't always predict these things at time of production.

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