Jack And Jill Vs. The World (2008) Movie Review

Cystic fibrosis is a troubling disease that many people fight each and everyday. There is a film out there to be made to bring more awareness to fighting cystic fibrosis; however the new indie Jack and Jill vs. The World is not that film.

Directed and co-written by Vanessa Parise, Jack and Jill vs. The World is a dreary romantic comedy centered on a relationship with one character having cystic fibrosis. Parise attempts to make this film into a warm, funny, heartfelt fairy tale, but the film does not come close to inhabiting any of those qualities or assumptions.

Jack (Freddie Prinze, Jr.) is a successful New York advertising executive that bachelor and set in his ways. That is until he meets the free-spirited Jill (Taryn Manning), who is an aspiring actress that is happy by the simple things in life. After attempting to help Jill get on her feet by letting her crash at his luxurious apartment, Jack falls for her though she is his total opposite. As their relationship builds, the two write their own manifesto, which includes numerical rules, including “Be Honest,” as the top of the list. Jill in fact has cystic fibrosis, which she hides from Jack by sneaking off to the hospital for breathing treatments. However, once Jack learns of Jill’s secret it challenges his old ways and the new way of life that he learned from her.

Parise and co-writer Peter Stebbings had good intentions with their script for this film, but the overall execution is just flimsy. Though the film is under ninety minutes long, the film drags from one cliché to another, and carries along all of these one dimensional characters that are like cardboard cutouts. Jack and Jill vs. The World also wants to be a romantic comedy, but there are no laughs in the film and the romantic moments are sloppy. The entire secret of Jill being sick is unveiled by a reoccurring cough, which of course everyone catches onto except for the supposedly very smart Jack. The film is full of one pointless choice after another, which includes an unnecessary voice over narration by Jack’s father, who is played by Robert Forster.

Freddie Prinze, Jr. has never been too credible of an actor, and he stamps the approval of that assessment with his role as Jack. Prinze pouts and curls his chin as he sleepwalks through this role with no emotion or presence. Taryn Manning, who showed some range in Hustle and Flow, is also miscast as Jack’s counterpoint, Jill. Parise also has a supporting role in the film as Jill’s friend Lucy, as does her writing partner Stebbings as Jack’s friend George.

It is not fair to call this film a failure, but it is for sure a mess. Cystic fibrosis is for sure a disease that does need more awareness brought to it and though this film exposes audiences to the disease, it is still not a good movie. It is more like this film is jumbled and set on test drive, rather than having a journey all its own.