Movie review by: Michelle
Click here for pictures Do you believe in destiny? Do you believe
that your soul-mate is somewhere out there? That you don't have to look for love because
you will know it when it finds you? "Next Stop Wonderland" is all this, and it
so much reminds me of "Sleepless In Seattle", that the two souls are meant for
each other but only they don't know it. So they go through a whole rigmarole of events to
find that 'one' meant for them.
The story here is about Erin where in the opening of the movie, we see her getting
dumped by her boyfriend - who is so self-absorbed that he videotapes his reasons for
breaking up but takes the VCR with him when he splits
With her hair messy and her eyes sad, Erin seems a troubled, melancholy soul in Boston,
a town too busy to care about her
until her sophisticated and well-meaning mother
steps in and put a glowing personal ad in The Boston Herald for her daughter. So Erin
embarks on a series of disastrous blind dates with a string of creeps and losers.
But wait, the movie has already telegraphed the Right Guy for her from the beginning.
For this, across town near the Wonderland subway stop, we are introduced to Alan, a real
heck of guy. He's 35 years old, studying for his marine biologist's degree, working days
as a plumber and volunteers at the Boston Aquarium, and is in real deep with some loan
sharks. Not only that, there's this real cute chick who has been flashing him the green
light, but no, Alan is too preoccupied to take interest.
Just as "Sleepless In Seattle", the two meant-for-each-other will meet only 5
minutes before the show ends, but "Sleepless" fares way, way better.
Sigh, there are just too many plot lines, I'm getting a headache. My patience is waning
fast. The movie is not devoid of wit but the shaky documentary-style camera work is a real
drawback. There are too many sub-plots to follow, it's full of loose threads, blind alleys
and false starts, making if feel and seem so overloaded. Even if it's not wholly
satisfying, it has some funny, acutely observed details about the frustration of looking
for love.