neumu [ cinematronic ]




	Life Or Something Like It
	Stephen Herek Angelina Jolie, Edward Burns, Tony Shalhoub, Stockard Channing 2002		As fluff goes, "Life or Something Like It" — a romantic comedy about a shallow, determinedly glamorous Seattle TV news reporter confronting her mortality — is astonishingly easy to take. What's unexpected is the lightness and charm that Angelina Jolie ("Lara Croft: Tomb Raider," "Girl, Interrupted") brings to the role of Lanie, the video reporter. Lanie's up for a network morning-show slot and seems to have it in the bag, but she freaks out when a homeless street person (Tony Shalhoub of "The Man Who Wasn't There") predicts that she's going to die within a week. She has an antagonistic love-hate relationship going with cynical, maverick cameraman Pete, played by Edward Burns, and it's soon apparent how it will resolve itself. Although there are a couple of false moments, they're not too hard to forgive because of the cast's enthusiasm. Yes, "Network" and "Broadcast News" did it better. But Jolie's charm is pretty strong stuff. With Stockard Channing as Lanie's Barbara Walters-style idol.