Career Opportunities

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If you're a lifetime member of the Jennifer Connelly fan club, you'll be in the passionate minority of people (100% male) who won't care that this 1991 comedy is wallowing in its own oily puddle of lameness. The gorgeous Ms. Connelly is conspicuously put on display in this typically lightweight fluff from writer-producer John Hughes. Frank Whaley does his best to liven up the male-fantasy plot about a semi-nerdy teen who gets a night-watchman job in a variety store, only to find himself locked in overnight with the local knockout (Connelly), who's as rich as she is beautiful. She's also really unhappy with her home life and her bully boyfriend (Dermot Mulroney), so it's Frank's big opportunity to make his move as a sympathetic Romeo. Shallow and contrived, the movie does have its standard moments of John Hughes delicacy, and a cameo by the late John Candy scores bonus points for comedy. Still, it's clear that the movie exists primarily to satisfy adolescent lust--and with Connelly as the object of desire, this otherwise tiresome comedy is a triumph of wish-fulfillment casting. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Career Opportunities.......2007-09-10

Great movie. Frank Whaley's funny. Dermot Mulroney hot in a weird way.
Love the soundtrack.
Watched it years ago. Kept hiring it out at the video store.
Looked to buy it for years. Finally found it for sale.
Worth the money.

Late 80's & Early 90's Innocence.......2007-08-07

I love this movie! I see it several times, because it takes away my stress. It's has such funny characters. I would say that it's displays the theatrical bridge between the 80's and 90's. It has an innocence within an ambient of security that small towns had at the time. If you like malls you'll find this movie to be a lot of fun. The fantasy of being in a huge store and playing with all the stuff is very soothing. It's a movie for those who find theft to be wrong, yet recognize that it's tempting. Frank Whaley is a real character; he would make an awesome talk show host! The scenes where the characters save the day give the happy ending a real boost.

Every teenager should watch this movie!!.......2007-01-20

I bought this movie for my 17 year old son. When it first came out my husband and I were very young ( all though married already) and even though it's a little corny, to me it's a classic teenage flick. Some parts are so hysterical. I would definately recommend anyone watching it especially teenagers. Great flick !!

A simple fun 83 minutes........2005-12-05

Though this film was released in the early 90's, it has a very 80's feel to it, compliments of John Hughes maybe. It's your typical teen comedy in many ways, just not one of the better ones. The plot was rather weak, though it did make me wonder what I would do stuck in a store overnight. Frank Whaley did a decent job as the town liar/geek/loser. Also the ending was fairly abrupt, and made you wonder what happened to everyone. However, there were two things in the film that were literally outstanding, and both of them were in Jennifer Connelly's tank-top. A must for fans of hers.

Endearingly Silly Comedy With Some Subtle Weight.......2004-11-23

The comedic story of two people locked overnight in a department store, one of them being Jennifer Connelly and the other being, obviously, one of the luckiest guys in the world. They end up encountering some rather incompetent would-be robbers in the process. Underneath the surface there are some kind of dark hints though. Connelly's character is in the store hoping to get caught shoplifting in order to embarrass her rich but scummy father. He's apparantly quite controlling and verbally abusive of her, and it's even implied that it might go far beyond that. The movie never really gets into that possibility beyond a glimmer, because it's chosen to be a fun, endearing romantic fantasy rather than a dark and disturbing drama, but the hint does add an extra dimension.

I think I'd prefer to think that the father is just an immense creep and not something far worse, because while that path could have made a really good drama, I like the really good comedy we got instead. People complain that this isn't serious; but it's a romance and where is it written that romances have to be all somber, stone-faced serious all the time? This romance is chipper, at times endearingly goofy, and wonderful fun, as the two leads (Jennifer and male co-star Frank Whaley) fall in love over the space of an evening. Cynics will scoff at that too, but good grief if you can't believe that something so cool could happen in one night in the movies, what hope do people have of love striking like lightening in real life? Not to mention the pluses of scenes like Jennifer riding the store's coin-opreated mechanical horse (with, happily, the inevitable bounce) or the fact that hearing her giggle is worth buying the movie alone.

Now that Connelly has finally received her rightful acclaim thanks to her recent movies, alot of people have dismissed her earlier stuff. To me, all through her career she's been brilliant. She's shined in the dramas everybody knows about (and a few that have slipped through the cracks, like "Seven Minutes In Heaven", one of her alltime best), she's shined in horror ("Phenomena", aka "Creepers"), she's shined in action/adventure like "The Rocketeer" and she's shined in comedies like "Career Opportunities". This diversity makes her one of moviedom's most valuable performers.

I don't mean to ignore the other performers; they all did fine jobs, but Jennifer was the main draw for me. Besides, I just don't think Whaley or the bumbling robbers would have looked quite as good in that white halter top.

As good as it is, it missed some opportunities to be significantly better, so it's refined to a strong four stars. The script was pretty minimal, and there were missed opportuities for humor, but the cast have made what they have work splendidly, and I fully recommend it. If you like this kind of comedic romantic fantasy fun, I also recommend the 2 "Mannequin" movies, the charming and enchanting "Amelie" and the heartpoundingly sexy "Dream Trap".

Chef - Career Opportunities for Young People

Average customer rating:

Chef - Career Opportunities for Young People

Manufacturer: First Light Video Publishing
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

General | Educational | Genres | DVD | Video
ASIN: B0007TKNY2
Release Date: 2005-03-01

DVD:

DVD

DVD