I’m somewhat of a softie when it comes to romantic comedies. It helps if the movie is really, really good, but sometimes one that merely okay will suffice. “The Perfect Man” is anything but perfect, but it was okay enough for me to enjoy it. I had heard quite a bit about this film before it was released, and once it hit theatres, the word was that the premise was less than believable. Let me run it by you and I’ll tell you what I think. Heather Locklear plays a mother of two who is in a destructive relationship with a womanizing loser. She gets dumped by the guy (which is better for her), but her way of dealing with it is to pack up her two daughters and move to another city in search of a new life. We learn that running away has been a vicious cycle in her life, brought on by a strong inferiority complex. Her older daughter (Hilary Duff) decides enough is enough and plans to find ‘The Perfect Man’ for her, or at least the illusion of finding him.

She gets advice from her friend’s Uncle (Chris Noth), pretending that she’s doing a school project about what makes a ‘perfect man.’ She then uses this information and the Internet to fool her mom into thinking she may have finally found the right guy.

The main complaint I heard about this film was that no one would ever buy Heather Locklear as having trouble finding a guy. After all, she’s gorgeous and men would be throwing themselves at her. Well, let me tell you a little about this theory. Yes, Locklear is gorgeous, but I have known a lot of beautiful women who have inferiority complexes and go from one destructive relationship to another, because they fall for the only guys with the nerve to ask them out… the jerks of the world. Most average ‘Nice Guys’ don’t have the nerve to ask out a beautiful woman, so they get passed by. It is only the narcissistic guys who generally have the nerve, and those are the one that give ‘Nice Guys’ a bad name. This is a generalization, and it doesn’t happen all the time, but it happens often to be considered the norm. So because of this I can ‘buy’ into Locklear’s character having such a horrible time with men.

That said, “The Perfect Man” does have its share of plot holes, but that is inherent of just about every movie that comes out of Hollywood. They are stories, fantasies if you will. You can either choose to sit back and be entertained if the story is at least well told, or go see something else. This movie is not meant to be taken seriously, so I was able to kick back and have an occasional chuckle at the proceedings.

The only real problem I had with the movie was a personal one, and nothing against the movie itself. One of the things that drew me to the film was the news that Dennis DeYoung of “Styx” was listed as being in it. I am a huge fan of ‘Styx’… well at least the old ‘Styx’ before DeYoung was forced out of the group. His role in the movie was that of a Dennis DeYoung impersonator who fronts a ‘Styx’ tribute band. Since I always considered DeYoung to be the heart and soul of the group, it was just kind of depressing to see him playing a part that was kind of self-deprecating.

The DVD, which was just released by Universal contains a few extra features, about what you would expect for this type of film. You have a few deleted scenes and some funny outtakes, as well as a commentary. There is also an interview with Locklear and Duff, where they discuss their onscreen relationship. Additionally you will find some Blogs that were written by Duff while working on the set.

“The Perfect Man” isn’t going to appeal to everyone, but it will certainly be a huge hit with younger girls.

Directed by: Mark Rosman
Starring: Heather Locklear, Hilary Duff, Chris Noth
Extras: Commentary by filmmakers, Mom & Me - Hilary and Heather talk about their Onscreen Mother/Daughter Relationship, Getting the Perfect Look, On the Set with Hillary - Blogs and Buddies, Deleted Scenes, Outtakes
Specifications: Widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: Universal
Release Date: 11/1/2005
Region 1
MPAA Rating: PG
Website

We'll give The Perfect Man a C.