Good Advice (2001)

Redundant and unnecessary.

it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Ryan Turner (Charlie Sheen) is a womanizing hard driving stockbroker. The big publisher CEO Donald Simpson double-crosses him by feeding him false information taking revenge for sleeping with his wife. Ryan loses his clients, his money, his job and even his broker's license. He is forced to live with his self-involved girlfriend Cindy (Denise Richards). She had enough of his poverty and leaves him. Without any prospects, he takes over her badly written advice column for her paycheque. He must pretend that Cindy is still writing at home to her boss Page Hensen (Angie Harmon). At first, he's just as bad as she was. Eventually he starts trying. His best friend Barry Sherman (Jon Lovitz) and wife Cathy (Rosanna Arquette) aren't the most stable. When the column starts to get traction, everybody wants a piece including Cindy and CEO Simpson.This is not a good movie. Charlie Sheen is not light rom-com material. If you question this notion, check this movie out and you'll see. The story is nothing to write home about but it's not that bad either. The setup is awkward. The jokes aren't funny. I didn't laugh once. Jon Lovitz and Rosanna Arquette come closest to being funny. Charlie Sheen just isn't that guy. It's not a bad thing. Most actors can't do everything.

Entertaining romantic comedy. Ryan Turner(Charlie Sheen)is a suave stockbroker that loses his job for accusations of insider trading. His lovely girlfriend Cindy(Denise Richards)leaves him for free flowing money. She also walks out on her job as an advice columnist for a small, near-broke newspaper ran by the alluring Angie Harmon. In desperation Ryan secretly takes over Cindy's column. By the time Cindy returns hopefully to make up with Ryan; he has already fallen in love with her former boss. The supporting cast includes: Jon Lovitz, Barry Newman, Estelle Harris and Rosanna Arquette. Sheen is quite charming; Richards and Harmon are very easy on the eyes. Arquette to me was irritating. My advice is to invest some time watching this funny romantic comedy.NOTE: this movie led to the marriage of Sheen and Richards.

Good Advice is built on sexist and ageist stereotypes. The attempts at humour could only have been more obvious if accompanied by canned laughter. The jokes are cringe-worthy to the point where it is embarrassing to hear. The dialogue is at best predictable and clichéd. The "story" is syrupy, unbelievable and littered with plot-holes large enough to drive a truck through.This film is obviously aimed at an immature, naive audience -- the only group that would be able to enjoy it. Avoid this garbage at all cost if you have any taste whatsoever. It isn't worth gambling the 93 precious minutes of your life that would confirm my opinion.

It takes a lot for me to enjoy a romantic comedy I usually don't. But "Good Advice" is one of the few that I would recommend. It is funny! The whole movie too. This is so well written and directed that there is not a dull moment anywhere in it. The actors are ALL perfectly cast with Charlie Sheen, Denise Richards and Barry Newman especially so. What is really good about this film is that the writers concentrated on the humorous storyline about the lovelorn column deception and not pad it out with unneeded romantic scenes between the two main characters. The film reminds me of those type of "frothy" comedies they made in the 1960's (without the heavy sexual humor that this film has of course) and because of it's unique blend of comedy, light romance and pathos the makers ended up with a witty highly entertaining movie.