Mona Lisa Smile (2003)

Number Rolled: 61

Movie Name/Year: Mona Lisa Smile (2003)

Genre: Drama

Length: 119 minutes

Rating: PG-13

Director: Mike Newell

Writer: Lawrence Konner, Mark Rosenthal

Actors: Julia Roberts, Kirsten Dunst, Julia Stiles, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Ginnifer Goodwin, Dominic West, Juliet Stevenson, Marcia Gay Harden, John Slattery, Marian Seldes, Jennie Eisenhower, Laura Allen, Topher Grace, Jordan Bridges

Katherine Watson arrives at Wellesley, an all girl college, to teach art history and believing she is going to change the world. Set between the years of 1953 and 1954, there’s still a lot of change set to occur in the future for women; in that era, however, it’s marriage that the women are almost solely after. Katherine gets close to a few of her students and attempts to make a difference in their lives. In some cases the result is favorable, others not so much.

I have to be honest here, this movie just kind of was. I don’t think I’m the target audience. I got it. I liked the message but the story didn’t do anything for me. It was a really long 119 minutes from my perspective. That being said, there’s not much I can comment on.

I thought the actors were great. They likely did exactly what they were instructed to do and then some. I’m a huge fan of the quirky goddess herself, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and thought she was brilliant. Julia Roberts was also amazing. However, I had some issues with Julia Stiles strange accent. I also thought Ginnifer Goodwin just played an old fashioned version of her character from “He’s Just Not That Into You,” of course, “Mona Lisa Smile” came first so it might just be an issue of type-casting. Something about Kirsten Dunst bugged me, but I can’t put my finger on it, which is strange, because I usually think she’s alright. If I figure it out I’ll put it in a P.S. on the post at a later date.

All in all, this movie wasn’t for me. I understand why people would like, or even love, it. I’m not one of them. I didn’t hate it either. It was just kind of there.

Overall Opinion – 2.5/5