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Movies / On DVD / New in Town
New in Town

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New in Town (2009)

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Reviews Counted:135

Fresh:24

Rotten:111

Average Rating:3.7/10

Consensus: Cliched and short on charm, New In Town is a pat genre exercise that fails to bring the necessary heat to its Minnesota setting.

Rated: 12A [See Full Rating] for language and some suggestive material.

Runtime: 1 hr 36 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:27-02-2009

Synopsis: Renee Zellweger stars opposite Harry Connick Jr. in this snow-packed romantic comedy. NEW IN TOWN begins in Miami, home to Lucy Hill (Zellweger), a single, high-powered executive on the fast track... Renee Zellweger stars opposite Harry Connick Jr. in this snow-packed romantic comedy. NEW IN TOWN begins in Miami, home to Lucy Hill (Zellweger), a single, high-powered executive on the fast track to being a CEO. With her spiked heels, plush bachelorette pad, and fierce collection of power suits, Lucy is unprepared when her boss sends her to snowy Minnesota to work on-site at one of the company's factories. Reluctantly leaving her sunny home, Lucy lands in New Ulm, a small town distinguished by a thick Midwestern accent, a strong work ethic, and an appropriately skeptical attitude toward big-city newcomers like Lucy, who finds herself in a brutal battle against several factory workers, a nosy assistant (Siobhan Fallon), and a stubborn union rep (Connick) who, as fate would have it, just happens to be a love interest as well. Zellweger appears a bit wooden at the start of the film but eases into her role as the film progresses. As her character grows more comfortable in her own skin and develops some empathy towards her new neighbors, we see Zellweger's familiar charm emerge. Much of the film's humor comes at the expense of Minnesotans, but the cast delivers the jokes in good fun. Director Jonas Elmer captures some chemistry between his two leads, though the film doesn't rely too heavily on this romance. Instead, it explores the differences in small- versus big-town life, exposing the unique, homey appeal of the former. By focusing on the people working behind the scenes, NEW IN TOWN celebrates a way of American life that is rarely the focus of Hollywood romantic comedies. [More]

Starring: Renée Zellweger, Harry Connick, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, J.K. Simmons

Starring: Renée Zellweger, Harry Connick, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, J.K. Simmons, Frances Conroy, Mike O'Brien, Rashida Jones

Director: Jonas Elmer

Director: Jonas Elmer
Screenwriter: Kenneth Rance, C. Jay Cox
Producer: Paul Brooks, Peter Safran, Darryl Taja, Tracey E. Edmonds
Composer: John Swihart
Studio: Lions Gate Films

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for New in Town

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
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The film starts off as a tedious, lifeless ordeal and it stays that way with a vengeance.

Full Review Source: Sunday Times (UK) | comment Comment
03/06/09
Edward Porter
Edward Porter
Sunday Times (UK)

This is a dopey piece of work, slack, derivative, sentimental.

Full Review Source: Observer [UK] | comment Comment
03/06/09
Philip French
Philip French
Observer [UK]

Predictable and uninspired, it is one more example of the dumb comedies that Hollywood is churning out at an alarming rate.

Full Review Source: Daily Express | comment Comment
03/03/09
Allan Hunter
Allan Hunter
Daily Express

A shockingly banal script lends the movie a generic awfulness; you wish Zellweger were in better hands.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/27/09
Joshua Rothkopf
Joshua Rothkopf
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There are precious few laughs to be found in this tale.

Full Review Source: Times [UK] | comment Comment
02/27/09
Wendy Ide
Wendy Ide
Times [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Renée Zellweger's rabbity, dimply pout - surely the strangest facial expression in Hollywood - simpers and twitches out of the screen in this moderate girly flick that adheres with almost religious fanaticism to the feelgood romcom handbook.

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
02/27/09
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The most shocking thing about New In Town is the sheer lack of care that seems to have gone into it. It's as if a terrible TV script has been pulled out of a dusty drawer and padded out into a movie.

Full Review Source: Digital Spy | comment Comment
02/27/09
Simon Reynolds
Simon Reynolds
Digital Spy

must have paid Zellweger a lot of money. Romcom fans should save theirs for repeat outings to He's Just Not That Into You.

comment Comment
02/27/09
Lesley O'Toole
Lesley O'Toole
Heat Magazine

Handed a role that will amuse nobody but her bank manager, Zellweger displays an infectious lack of enthusiasm, convincing only in capturing the look of someone who wishes they would rather be anywhere else. It’s easy to sympathise.

Full Review Source: Sky Movies | comment Comment
02/27/09
Elliott Noble
Elliott Noble
Sky Movies

Recalling the shmaltziest bits of similar city-slicker-meetsbumpkin romcoms like Doc Hollywood and Sweet Home Alabama, New In Town is pure Valentine’s Day drivel.

Full Review Source: Total Film | comment Comment
02/27/09
Ken McIntyre
Ken McIntyre
Total Film
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Times [UK] | comment Comment
02/27/09
Times [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The screenplay is credited to Kenneth Rance and C. Jay Cox, but it's so shockingly inept, it might have been churned out by some cheap screenwriting software.

Full Review Source: Daily Mail [UK] | comment Comment
02/27/09
Christopher Tookey
Christopher Tookey
Daily Mail [UK]

There is the expected smattering of slapstick moments and Connick Jr delivers the requisite outdoorman charm to show Renee just how cool the cold can be.

Full Review Source: Sunday Mirror [UK] | comment Comment
02/27/09
Mark Adams
Mark Adams
Sunday Mirror [UK]

Groundbreaking cinema it ain’t, with the story unfolding exactly as you’d expect. But fans of the corn director Frank Capra used to cook will find it a dish to savour.

Full Review Source: Daily Mirror [UK] | comment Comment
02/27/09
David Edwards
David Edwards
Daily Mirror [UK]

There are fears the recession could turn into a depression – which is where you’ll be if you endure this “romantic comedy” about factory workers facing the sack.

Full Review Source: Sun Online | comment Comment
02/27/09
Sun Online
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

We have to munch through a load of Capra-corn as she switches from corporate hatchet-woman to champion of local business. "You know, you're not so bad when you're unconscious," says Connick Jr of her. We could probably say the same of the scriptwriter.

Full Review Source: Independent | comment Comment
02/27/09
Anthony Quinn
Anthony Quinn
Independent

Zellweger’s face looks stuck in a permanent wince. Oh wait, it’s the clunking script about a spike-heeled career girl forced to move from Miami to Minnesota.

Full Review Source: thelondonpaper | comment Comment
02/27/09
Jonathan Crocker
Jonathan Crocker
thelondonpaper

New In Town is rather like tapioca itself, soggy and virtually tasteless. It’s like a Frank Capra movie with hardened arteries.

Full Review Source: This is London | comment Comment
02/27/09
Derek Malcolm
Derek Malcolm
This is London

By the time the film presents us with the social problem of getting an errant handful of buckshot fired into your bottom, you realise that everyone has lost faith in the movie.

Full Review Source: Scotsman | comment Comment
02/27/09
Scotsman
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This is not the first movie to have a laugh with the hicks versus city slicks theme - it's a pity director Jonas Elmer didn't add a little acid.

Full Review Source: Teletext | comment Comment
02/26/09
Victor Olliver
Victor Olliver
Teletext
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
all

Latest News for New in Town

May 25, 2009: RT on DVD: New In Town vs. Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus!
Let's be honest, folks; when the Renee Zellweger - Harry Connick Jr. romantic comedy New In Town is the biggest title in new release, you know it's a direct-to-video kind of... More...

February 08, 2009: Frozen nipples, a borderline dragon lady in distress, and class struggle at the dinner table. And the first movie this year to go toe to toe with the looming financial crisis, and those who suffer its effects most. Norma Rae In Stilettos. Opens in new window
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January 29, 2009: Critics Consensus: Taken Is A Near Miss
This week at the movies, we've got a kidnapping plot (Taken, starring Liam Neeson and Famke Janssen); haunted teens (The Uninvited, starring Emily Browning and Elizabeth Banks);... More...

January 29, 2009: Box Office Guru Preview: Three New Films Battle Super Bowl Frenzy
With all eyes on Tampa Bay for the Super Bowl, Hollywood offers three counter-programming options for those looking for something a little different. Fox releases the kidnapping... More...

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