Movie review – “This Life + 10” (2007) **

Watching the opening credits for this telemovie took me back to the jolt – 1998, watching the series with mates, relating to so much of it. It’s great to see everyone again even if only for novelty value. There are several bad ideas – totally bought Miles as a dodgy businessman, Warren as a life coach, Anna as a barrister, Ferdy as a corpse (he was always such a dull character), Milly as a stay at home mum… but not Egg as an author so successful they make a documentary about him after only one book (do such creatures exist?). Also the basic set up is yawn snore – group of friends father for a reunion (yawn), they clash (snore), and it’s all being filmed for the documentary on Egg (don’t believe it). I remember the character of Egg became boring in series two when he stopped being a dissatisfied lawyer and he isn’t very believable as an author here. Milly’s still a bit dull too – but Miles, Anna and Warren are still good value. The new characters are dull – the pretty, vacant 24 year old documentary filmmaker and Miles’ money-grabbing Asian cliché wife (snappy and one dimensional which verges on racist caricature) – Jenkins had her finger on the pulse for Gen X in the 90s but not so much the noughties and definitely not for Generation Y But far too many scenes that we’ve seen before in Big Chill movies: career woman wants baby and seeks sperm, unhappy gay man, reunion for funeral, video diary entries, dancing around listening to music, breakfast scenes, etc etc. Slickly directed and the acting is fine but far too many bad choices before this baby even left port.