Film Review: The Other Woman

‘The Other Woman’ tells the story of Carly (played by Cameron Diaz), an ambitious New York lawyer whose cynicism towards the ideas of true love and monogamy are finally swayed when she meets bad boy Mark (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau). However her happiness is short-lived when a surprise visit to his home goes horribly wrong and she discovers that he is married.

Source: TalkBacker

Scorned wife Kate (Leslie Mann) finds her whole world crashing around her when she realises that the woman standing on her doorstep is in fact her husband’s mistress. She leans on Carly for support and their heartbreak becomes the foundation of their relationship as “the weirdest friends ever.” To add insult to injury, the women soon discover that there is a third lady in love rat Mark’s life, the beautiful Amber (Kate Upton), and between the three of them, “The Lawyer, the Wife and the Boobs”  hatch a plan for revenge on the man who played them all.

L-R - Leslie Mann, Kate Upton, Cameron Diaz. Source: Huffington Post

Although the plot is arguably predictable and a little bit cliché, this film is a really easy watch and would be perfect for a girly night in. Diaz and Mann’s characters are the perfect counterparts of each other; the sassy career girl with ice queen tendencies, and the sweet, loveable wife, albeit a bit dippy. Mann in particular excels herself in her performance, sparking off Diaz with ease and providing moments of comedic genius thanks to her character’s ditzy personality. Her moments of humour are balanced by glimpses of vulnerability, which are played beautifully, tugging at the heartstrings and reminding you that she still has the devastation of a broken marriage to deal with.

Upton’s character, although likeable, is very much disposable. Amber’s naivety and girl-next-door charm makes her endearing, and her obvious beauty is appealing to male viewers, but her character is comparatively dull. This is a shame when so much more could have been done with her personality. She doesn’t really contribute much to the trio or the plot of the film, and even without her, Diaz and Mann would have worked perfectly on their own.

Source: OnTheRedCarpet

Although it is clear that there has been an attempt at a message of ‘girl power’, it is seemingly feeble and doesn’t really hit home unless you’re really looking for a moral of the story. Although women everywhere relish the idea of reaping revenge on men who have broken their hearts, the fact that the triage of women seem to devote every waking moment on their plot against Mark seems to contradict the point that the film is trying to get across, and it certainly drives wife Kate towards a mental breakdown.

While ‘The Other Woman’ isn’t the most memorable rom-com, I certainly found it an enjoyable watch. The glamorous settings of New York and Miami along with the sophisticated characters made the film pleasing to the eye, and the regular bursts of comedy moments made the story flow well without there being any lulls of tediousness. There’s even a bit of toilet humour thrown in (literally) to cater for the dozens of bored-looking boyfriends who have been dragged along to see yet another chick flick.

Source: Brunch News

Overall, ‘The Other Woman’ is fantastic for its target audience and definitely worth a trip to the cinema if you’re looking for a light-hearted, girly film.

Words by Sian Abbott

Why I don't subscribe to Mother's Day.

For most, Mother's Day signals its time to blow the lint off our 'savings' and splash out on gifts for our mums and grandmas. Our Lifestyle editor, Lisa, isn't so sure. To her, it's not about what you spend that counts - it's the effort behind it that matters.

Mother’s Day: The only day of the year we are allowed to show affection for our mums, or a great holiday that has become over-commercialised?

Either way - to me, it’s not worth all the effort that some companies try to make us all think it is. The email reminders calling for people to ‘not forget Mother’s day this year’ and ‘show your mum how much you love her’ start weeks before the big day. It’s just too much.

Every year brands cash in on trying to persuade consumers that they need to shell out hundreds of pounds to reassure our mums that we value how they raised us into normal citizens. 

No-one should spend all their money on an iPad in an attempt to show her that they care on one day out of 365. Instead, she should already know how lost they would be without her because she has been showered with hugs, appreciative texts and appreciates the effort spent to make time for her throughout the year. It’s effort that counts, not the price tag.

Cue Jessie J. It's not about the price tag...

For some reason card shops think that we need a specific day to show our mums how much we love them. It's as though, surely we can only express how thankful we are to one of the people that raised us in one 24-hour period. And we can only express this by buying a card, overpriced flowers and maybe even a box of chocolates. It may be cynical to suggest that this day is a way of tiding over the profits of gift and card shops from Valentine’s Day to Easter, but that’s really all it is.

While Mothering Sunday is a good excuse to make the journey home and spend the day dedicated to being with family, that doesn’t mean that people shouldn’t go home at other parts of the year as well.

In the first few years of University when you’ve just flown the nest for the first time it can be hard on a parent, but that should prompt semi-regular visits home, plus calls and texts rather than using a commercialised holiday to force you home.

After all, a mum is for life – not just for Mother’s day.

If you want an easy and cheap way to wow mum this Mother's day, take a look at our breakfast in bed recipes.

What's the nicest thing that you've done for mum?