Directed by Julie Anne Robinson whose credits mostly consist of television, One for the Money is a typical “girl power” chic flic. Based on the very popular Stephanie Plum novels (18+ in print) by Janet Evanovich, the film puts Katherine Heigl in the leading role. One for the Money is a competently directed, cookie cutter, action comedy that is well paced but technically flawed. If Katherine Heigl wasn’t so damn hot, I probably wouldn’t have made it through in one sitting. Face it, she’s the only reason guys are gonna sit through this… as its the kind of film that paints the male of our species as abusive morons.

Unemployed and newly-divorced Stephanie Plum lands a job at her cousin’s bail-bond business, where her first assignment puts her on the trail of a wanted local cop from her romantic past. Things go from bad to worse as she learns there are consequences to her actions. Assisted by a bounty hunter by the name of Ranger, Stephanie continues her investigation bringing her face to face with some unsavory and dangerous characters.

OK, I like Katherine Heigl movies (hangs head in shame). She’s easy on the eyes, she can act, and most of her films are moderately entertaining… and she’s got one of the sexiest smiles in showbiz. James O’Mara (Terrra Nova) has a very charming, middle aged Mel Gibson look and feel to him, and he gives a good performance. There’s also great chemistry between the two. Although the romantic part of their relationship is fairly brief in the scope of the film, what time they do have on screen works… and that’s half the sale for a film like this.

One for the money has that 80s action comedy charm to it. Kinda like Beverly Hills Cop, but not quite as good. Having never read the novels (and I probably never will) I have no actual basis for comparison, so my thoughts are based solely on the movie. Everything in this film feels relatively familiar. There’s nothing new here, and it’s very predictable. One for the Money is a very safe, but under rated film for this genre. It hits all the marks and doesn’t really do anything wrong (although I hated the opening credit sequence), but it just doesn’t bring anything new to the table.

During its theatrical run, One for the Money was panned by critics, being compared to the Aniston/Butler disaster The Bounty Hunter. The two films are nothing alike. Instead of focusing on the comedic relationship crap through the entire movie, One for the Money tries to take itself seriously for the most part. Does she get the guy in the end…. of course she does, but the film knows you know, and doesn’t waste the whole movie on the romantic dribble that it could have easily gotten away with. Be warned though, guys for the most part are going to have a hard time liking this film, after all, it is what it is… a chic flic made by chics! But honestly, I’ve spent a lot more time on far worse films this year. So, if your girlfriend wants to watch it, this is definitely one of the easier ones to get through…. take one for the team!

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