Blonde Ambition Movie Review

Earlier this year, Blonde Ambition made record-breaking headlines. Not for anything good, mind you, but for its opening day box office. One source said the movie logged a whopping 48 paying customers on Friday, earning the film $350 total. By the time the movie was out of theaters altogether, it had made less than $7,000.

Blonde Ambition, alas, ultimately earned substantially more than it deserved. As a star vehicle for Jessica Simpson, produced by her dad (with the aid of seven other producers), it's a rolling disaster from start to finish.

Simpson's Katie is a small-town yokel (her dad is Willie Nelson, just about the only time you'll want to look up from the paper to see what's on the TV) who decides to move to New York to be with her fiancee, a model. When she gets there, he's in bed with another woman. Katie ends up rooming with cousin Haley (Rachael Leigh Cook), and through a series of fortuitous events ends up getting a job as a personal assistant in a Trump-like development company, engineered by VP Debra (Penelope Ann Miller) so she can use the dim Katie to oust CEO Mr. Connelly (Larry Miller). Oh, and Luke Wilson is in it too, as the love interest.

It's clear from the start that everyone appearing in the film is horrified to be part of a Jessica Simpson star vehicle, and I can't even imagine the paycheck was that good. Maybe they were just bored. From the looks on their faces, they certainly got there quickly after shooting started. Director Scott Marshall (of the Gerry/Penny clan) may direct competently, but the story he's working with is so outright vapid that it's impossible to tell whether it's any good.

The goal was for this movie to be a breakout vehicle for Simpson to move big time into starring roles in the movies, and thanks to its bombing, that's just not going to happen. Simpson's acting here makes The Dukes of Hazzard look like Oscar caliber material. Someone needs to tell her that lipstick and a new hairdo just don't substitute for real acting ability. She sinks the movie utterly any time she's on screen. Sadly, that's virtually every frame.

I can only say that I have never not laughed so much.

The DVD includes deleted scenes and a making-of featurette.





Taxi to LAX, leaving Hollywood!