'Kate & Leopold' is real blast from past

By Forrest Hartman
Reno (Nev.) Gazette-Journal

The release date for Kate & Leopold has been changed to Dec. 25th.

KATE & LEOPOLD (Rated PG-13 for brief profanity) Three Stars (Good) Meg Ryan is typically fetching and Hugh Jackman is perfect in this sweet, romantic comedy about a 21st-century career woman who falls in love with a 19th-century aristocrat. When a crack in time brings them together, there's never any doubt they'll fall in love, but the charming performances allow us to look beyond plot cliches. Directed by James Mangold. Miramax, 120 mins.

Fortunately, Miramax is serving up an early Christmas gift in the form of "Kate & Leopold," an ultra-sweet romance starring Meg Ryan and Hugh Jackman as the title characters.

The setup is similar to that in Christopher Reeve's "Somewhere In Time." Kate, a 21st-century career woman, falls in love with Leopold, a 19th-century aristocrat. Fortunately, director James Mangold avoids the pitfalls that made "Somewhere" a snoozer.

Instead, he gives us a nicely paced piece that's syrupy enough to draw smiles, yet tart enough to remain interesting. Where Reeves used meditation to connect with his distant love, Ryan and Jackman take a more direct approach.

Leopold accidentally is sucked into the 21st century by Stuart (Liev Schreiber), one of Leo's modern descendants who has discovered a crack in time. Of course, nobody believes Leo is from the past.

Kate's brother, Charlie (the very-funny Breckin Meyer), thinks Leo is an actor practicing his craft. Everyone else thinks he's a nut, but an awfully likable one.

Eventually, of course, Kate discovers she has been looking for an old-school guy; and Leo finds this modern woman far more appealing than the porcelain dolls of his own century.

Along the road to romance, we run into the obligatory fish-out-of-water and time-travel jokes, but most of them seem surprisingly fresh, particularly delivered by this cast.

Jackman got his big break with last year's "X-Men," and has since delivered one terrific performance after another in "Swordfish," and "Someone Like You."

In "Kate & Leopold" he offers his best performance to date as a prim-and-proper socialite longing to toss the shackles of aristocracy. He is believable, funny and, above all, completely charming.

With him, Ryan has terrific chemistry and does what she does best: make us love her. While one could argue that Ryan is not a great actress, there's no doubt she's one of her generation's most likable movie stars; and her winsome smile and girl-next-door personality play perfectly here.

Science-fiction fans may enjoy the time-travel angle, although serious analysis will result in a headache. For instance, all elevators, a luxury Leo invented during the 19th century, stop working when he jumps to the future.

Presumably, they break down because Leo hadn't invented them before making the jump. That makes sense, but one can't help but wonder why they didn't disappear completely. But like I said, this is headache fodder.

It's best to approach "Kate & Leopold" with the attitude that you're going along for the ride. Anyone who can do that, should thoroughly enjoy the scenery.

Rated PG-13 for brief profanity