When women go bad, it doesn't take much for them to drag their men down with them.
One Night at McCool's stars Liv Tyler as the gorgeous, and seriously unbalanced seductress, Jewel Valentine, who sucks weak minded men into her life and uses them up like 2-ply tissue paper in her mad quest to achieve her dream of home ownership.
Crafted with a strong eye to detail and style, McCool's flows effortlessly through a series of flashbacks and perspective changes to tell the story of three men who fall so hopelessly in love with Liv's character, that they'll do anything to please her. True, the acts they commit in the name of love are outrageous and heinous by our standards, but there is a certain amount of truth in the way Liv manipulates these over sexed rump humpers. Each man represents a separate and distinct character flaw, flaws which are frequently present in all men, and flaws which lead these three to a miserable, woebegone ending at the hands of this psychotically obsessed siren.
Liv herself... is perfect. But the Hobbit does not mean that in the traditional sense. For though a stunningly beautiful woman, Liv hardly fits the typical Hollywood mold for beauty. One look at the little tummy poking out of her snug fitting dress quickly reveals that. Yet, she's beautiful. Perhaps one of the most beautiful actresses ever to grace the screen. Her strength, comes from more than just a hot body and a pretty face. Her presence is never overwhelming, nor overt. Nor are her lines delivered with a feverish fervor that crashes its way on to film. Still, when she is present, she COMMANDS the screen. All eyes are inexorably drawn to Liv and her soft, quietly confident presence. She doesn't need grandstanding or cool camera angles, or wild poses to capture EVERYONE's attention. She does it naturally, with grace, poise, and electric charm that makes this character in particular float to life right under your nose.
Liv Tyler owns this film, in just the same way her character Jewel owns the men within it. And though Jewel is certainly unbalanced, and obviously flawed... still there's a certain sort of attraction to this woman who knows what she wants, and will use anything or anyone to get it.
Laugh at the darkness, cringe at the madness, and despise the weakness that makes men men. One Night at McCool's has something new to say.
