The Oranges

As a failed screenwriter, it irks me to no end go to the theater and some piece of shit movie like The Oranges.  The cast is fine, even though they were all miscast. This time we have to single out Jeanne McCarthy, the casting director, for being an idiot.

Many of the people involved in this wreck worked together on previous projects like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. But the screenwriters were two nobodies. In normal circumstances, a script with so many holes in it wouldn't make it through a cheap screenwriting workshop.

It's narrated, for one thing. Voice overs are always a sign of bad writing unless there is something particularly interesting about the voice. Good examples are Sunset Boulevard and American Beauty, where the narrator, a character in the movie, also happens to be dead. A medium good example out now is Looper. Other examples where the character's voice is unique are Blade Runner and Days of Heaven.

In this case, the voice over is Alia Shakwat and there's no real reason for it. She doesn't figure in the plot, describes herself as a fifth wheel which begs the question... why is she there?

I can't go on. It was just stupid and boring and the screenwriters didn't deserve to have it made.