Katie Holmes has talent. But it's not much on display in this bland romance, which lost out to the similar Chasing Liberty in a race to reach the box office.
When Samantha Mackenzie (Holmes) rebels against the establishment, it's personal: her father (Michael Keaton) is a US president seeking re-election. After she hits the scandal sheets with some mildly tawdry antics, it's enough to nosedive his numbers and require extreme measures. Cue Samantha's mysterious new graduate-student love interest (an underwhelming Marc Blucas) and - - look! - - there's the third-reel twist arriving right on time.
Add a writing credit for Jerry Kangaroo Jack O'Connell and put Forest Whitaker (Hope Floats, Waiting To Exhale) behind the camera and expectations sink pretty sharpish. Should this plot be attempted a third time, best bet might be a docudrama on the Bush twins' tabloid exploits. Paging Paris Hilton and Tara Reid...
NOVERDICT
