What Women Want

by Paramount

$12.98
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Average Rating: * * * half star -
Sales Rank:3400 (lower is better)
Price as of:08/28/2008 5:15:10 AM MDT
Price Used:$0.70
Shipping:Free Shipping on most orders over $25*
Availability:Usually ships in 24 hours
Release Date:2001-05-08
Label:Paramount
UPC:097363383840
Binding:DVD
Published By:Paramount
ASIN:B00003CXQS
Category:DVD

Actors and Actresses

Editorial Reviews and Product Descriptions

Product Description

A Chicago advertising exec Nick Marshall (Mel Gibson) gets a whole new outlook on life when a fluke accident gives him the ability to read women's minds. At first this gift provides Nick with way too much information but he begins to realize that he can use it to good effect especially when it comes to outwitting his new boss Darcy McGuire (Helen Hunt). In spite of his best efforts to finesse Darcy he soon finds himself falling in love and ultimately understanding what women want.System Requirements:Starring: Mel Gibson Judy Greer Sarah Paulson Ana Gasteyer Diana-Maria Riva Lisa Edelstein Loretta Devine Helen Hunt Marisa Tomei Alan Alda Ashley Johnson Mark Feuerstein Lauren Holly Delta Burke and Valerie Perrine. Directed By: Nancy Meyers. Running Time: 90 Min. Color. This film is presented in "Widescreen" format. Copyright 2000 Paramount Pictures.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: PG UPC: 097363383840
Amazon.com

It must've made for a great pitch meeting: Male chauvinist advertising executive gains the ability to hear the thoughts of any woman around him. Add Mel Gibson--as Nick, the divorced "man's man" who can charm almost any woman into bed--and you've got high-concept comedy made in Hollywood heaven, right? Not necessarily. The smartest thing director Nancy Meyers did with What Women Want is dispose of this ludicrous plot contrivance before it wears out its welcome. It's fun to see Mel react to a deafening chorus of female thoughts, but his dubious "gift"--courtesy of an accidental electro-shock in his bathtub--is a mixed blessing for the audience. The women in Nick's life conveniently think in complete sitcom-friendly sentences, and the novelty quickly wears thin.

The movie improves by focusing on the fallout of Nick's predicament. Exploiting his unfair advantage, he sabotages the career of his new boss (Helen Hunt) even as he's falling in love with her; says all the right things to the aspiring actress (Marisa Tomei) who previously spurned his advances; and uses mind reading to curry favor with his 15-year-old daughter (Ashley Johnson). This two-faced scheming isn't malicious, however, and What Women Want is blessed by Gibson's amiably nuanced performance. His graceful riff on Fred Astaire is a dazzling surprise, and as Nick reforms, Gibson takes major credit for whatever depth this movie achieves. After a bit of nonsense, What Women Want has a lot to say about male and female behavior, be it noble or unappealing. It's both amusing and truthful, and that's almost as fun as a glimpse into someone else's brain. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Could and should be better. - Reviewed on 2008-06-08
* * *
1 customer found this review not to be helpful.
Romantic comedy in which Mel Gibson stars as a chauvinistic advertising executive who one day after a freak accident finds that he can hear women's thoughts, and uses this to his advantage, not least of all in the workplace. An intriguing premise that makes a lot of its comic potential but I felt that more could have been done with the idea and the ending is a big let-down. Could and should be better.
Hmmm... - Reviewed on 2008-06-04
* *
1 customer found this review not to be helpful.
Enjoyable but rent it first or buy on sale or second. It is fun but not sure if it is worth full price.
What Women Want - Reviewed on 2008-05-28
* * * *
1 customer found this review helpful, 2 did not.

Great Mel movie, but Hunt needs to find a new role. She fits on TV but movies she just can't carry off the acting.

This film is light hearted and funny. There is no deep hidden message just fun.
What Women Want - Reviewed on 2008-03-30
* * * *
37 customers found this review helpful.

This is a very formulatic romantic comedy, but it shines largely in part to the performance of Mel Gibson. It takes someone very confident in his masculinity to put on a bra, paint his nails, and put on pantyhose all in the name of comedy. When he is suddenly struck with the gift to hear what women think, it is almost karmic destiny in retribution for his playboy ways of the past. When the shoe is on the other foot, and he sees first hand what is dealt to the fairer sex, it changes him profoundly.
Mind Reading For Fun, Profit And Nookie - Reviewed on 2008-02-27
* * * *

To start with, I just have to laugh about something. Can you imagine Mel Gibson, a great director, by the way, I'm a fan, being cast nowadays as a warm, fuzzy character, as he was in this film? How times have changed, huh?

What Women Want has some funny scenes and dips its beak into a few taboo subjects, and although it raised eyebrows for its blatant plugging of several brand name products, all passed off as internal storytelling at a fictional ad agency, some of the subject matter here really was kind of bravely touched upon considering this movie came from the normally placid waters of the studio that released it. '90's A-lister Helen Hunt is still fun to watch (whatever happened to her, by the way?) and a mentally voyeuristic Gibson plays the slightly kooky man-granted-fantasy-insight-into women's-minds with the right mix of charm, awe and shame. Just hearing him deliver the line, "...oh, I'm REALLY gay..." was worth the purchase price.

If you want a light, funny, slightly outrageous comedy for a night home alone, you could do worse than this one.
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