What Women Want

What Women Want arrives as a comedy directed by Nancy Meyers, and its first strength is a clear sense of purpose. Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt give What Women Want a recognisable human centre before the larger mechanics take over. The central situation in What Women Want comes into focus without a long explanation: A cocky, chauvinistic advertising executive magically acquires the ability to hear what women are thinking. Across its 2h 7m running time, Nancy Meyers keeps What Women Want engaging in bursts but unable to maintain the same control.

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What Women Want uses its comedy framework to consider embarrassment, status and the gap between confidence and reality. For the character played by Mel Gibson, that idea gives What Women Want stakes beyond the next immediate obstacle. The recurring pressure of an important relationship prevents the theme in What Women Want from feeling like decoration added after the story. Nancy Meyers makes What Women Want more thoughtful whenever the implications remain inside action and reaction.

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The narrative of What Women Want works from a simple but productive collision between the central character and an important relationship. Through Mel Gibson, What Women Want keeps that premise rooted in a reaction the audience can understand. Josh Goldsmith introduces a difficult choice at a useful point, giving What Women Want a reason to change pace without abandoning its emotional line. The handling of the wider conflict is not equally fresh, yet What Women Want usually earns attention through clarity rather than surprise alone.

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Performance is the clearest human asset in What Women Want, beginning with the committed centre provided by Mel Gibson. Helen Hunt keeps What Women Want from settling into one emotional register by approaching the material from another angle. The presence of Marisa Tomei gives the surrounding world of What Women Want additional texture without distracting from the main line. When Nancy Meyers holds on a reaction, What Women Want communicates more efficiently than another explanatory exchange could manage.

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As director of What Women Want, Nancy Meyers proves engaging in bursts but unable to maintain the same control in the transitions between intimate material and larger demands. A strong scene in What Women Want often begins with a modest detail before Nancy Meyers lets its meaning expand. For What Women Want, worthwhile ideas compete with an uneven structure because the central tone remains visible even during busy passages. The weakness in What Women Want is that the pace alternates between hurry and drift, although Nancy Meyers usually finds the original rhythm again.

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What Women Want gains much of its identity from well judged reactions, a choice that makes the world readable as well as attractive. The contribution of Paramount Pictures allows What Women Want to combine well judged reactions with a consistent visual language. Within its United States setting, What Women Want makes particularly good use of performer rhythm when the story needs to change scale. Sound and editing preserve the personality of What Women Want by supporting detail instead of announcing every intended response.

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My final view is that What Women Want provides a qualified recommendation for comedy fans who respond to personality and timing. Mel Gibson supplies the emotional memory of What Women Want, while Nancy Meyers keeps the genre machinery readable. A concern remains because the pace alternates between hurry and drift across part of What Women Want, yet the better passages retain their force. What earns What Women Want consideration is not perfection but the presence of choices that feel made for this story.