Hit by Lightning (2014)

Touches You

I'll tell you why so serious

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Ricky Miller (Jon Cryer) is a pathetic, balding manager of Debbie's restaurant in LA. Seth (Will Sasso) is his scheming sleazy idiot friend. In frustration, he prays to God for him to find his soulmate before he's hit by lightning. Out of nowhere, he gets a pop-up ad from E-Happily and is matched up with the perfect Danita (Stephanie Szostak). He falls completely in love. She tells him about her abusive husband and convinces him to kill him. I miss Duckie and I never liked Two and a Half Men. This is somewhere in the middle. Ricky is pathetic and some of Seth sleaziness does rub off on him. He's not the most appealing rom-com lead. Szostak is a beauty but she doesn't have the edge to be a femme fatal. That character could generate more laughs as a noir femme fatal. She's too nice to be mean. Seth is too much of a douche without the humanity. None of the attempted comedy is that funny.

SPOILER ALERT! ...Halfway through the movie, the popcorn still tasted fine and my only concern ping-ponged between Jon Cryer and the script. While his character, Ricky, was essentially a reprise of Cryer's character on "Two And a Half Men" ... I was left wondering if he was actually miscast. Could someone else have played Ricky's role better? Steve Buscemi was alluded to in the film. Buscemi playing Ricky? THAT would be hilarious. But Cryer should be nailing this role, the movie should be more memorable than the sitcom. Alas, I must put the "NEEDS MORE FUNNY" post-it on this one.Then the writing came off the rails. Why does the ending fall flat? Because we've already seen the Stephanie Szostak character, Donita, leave Ricky for 10 days. Her nine-month disappearance after the shooting is just more of the same. The story needs a more convincing second plot-point pay-off.Solution! ... Following the church scene where Ricky secretly meets Donita, have the cop (Ricky's relative) bust Ricky and Donita. Perhaps while the cop was visiting another 'family tree member' at the cemetery, he saw the grave Ricky dug and puts it all together. Tighter than the "crazy serial killer confessing to the wrong murder" excuse.Ricky and Donita go to court. They get a hard judge who goes soft. Donita gets 4 years, Ricky gets 5-and-a-half for pulling the trigger. Their love is now tested by a new element -- the only thing love truly desires: time. Ricky lamented about time before. Now he HAS something to wait for. Even jail is better than managing at Debby's. Ricky has plenty of time to write ... sappy love poetry? Fast forward to four years later. Donita visits Ricky everyday in jail. Silly conjugal visits. Revise the earlier runner about "I love you plus infinity" and close movie with Ricky and Donita in the prison visiting room, their palms pressed together against the glass partition, Donita tearing up, saying, "I love you plus ... how many days are there in 18 months?" to which Ricky quickly replies, "547 ... counting the leap year."

Well, there seems to be a real lack of decent "date" movies and/or Rom-Coms lately, so whenever I see one that looks promising, I give it a try. I really didn't know what to expect, as I'd never heard of this movie.It wasn't exactly very believable, but hey, it's a MOVIE. However, whomever did the makeup effects on Jon Cryer should never work in Hollywood. There is a BIG difference between "Balding" and "Mange." Honestly, the poor guy looked like someone had given him a haircut with a freakin' weed-whacker. I've been around many balding men and they never look like that. Sheesh. The premise of the movie is a knock-off of every movie where there's some pathetic loser that some "10" becomes involved with and asks them to do their bidding. This one had a twist or two, but still predictable.The characters even mention "Body Heat" as being very true to what was going on in the movie. The character played by Will Sasso was the one I liked, but was disappointed with the most. I think the character had a chance to really run off with the movie (please?), but Mr. Sasso reigned himself in. Pity. Overall: Not offensive. Not believable. Not high tech (thank god; I'm sick to death of those). Not particularly clever or that amusing. Did catch the jibe about Ashton Kutcher at the end. Ha ha.

HBL has Jon Cryer (Two and a Half Men) as Ricky, a man entering his forties without love and soon without hair. Ricky and his best friend Seth (Will Sasso - MadTV) have been best friends forever and muse over the chances of each actually finding their soul mate. He just wants to find someone special - and he does in Danita (Stephanie Szostak). Ricky joins an online dating site and seems to have found his. Needless to say things aren't quite what they seem and soon Ricky finds himself in a quandary straight out of a 1940s film noir.Hit by Lightning has a little too much a feel of TV about it to really fly, though it's got pace and a good script - personally I would have liked some filters and feeling of film, it is shot and lit very directly.It is a nice movie to wile away some time to - Cryer is good in his way and this small film plays to his strengths - it's the sort of film that you can watch on a plane and enjoy.