Midweek Mention... The War of the Roses

Bad Dads Film Review

Danny DeVito’s blackly comic THE WAR OF THE ROSES (1989) charts the disintegration of a marriage as Barbara and Oliver Rose try anything and everything to drive each other out of the shared marital home during a vicious divorce battle. Capitalising on the obvious chemistry between leads Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas as well as their shared cinematic history in 80's romantic comedies ROMANCING THE STONE and THE JEWEL OF THE NILE, director Danny DeVito chooses to frame the story by having his lawyer character Gavin D'Amato tell a potential client, at work, about multiple sexual encounters which occurred between the lead characters, their eventual deaths (spoiler alert) and also the time he got a footjob during their dinner party.
Whilst the dialogue is slick the tone feels uneven, veering from broad slapstick to darkly humorous fantasy, with a little film noir thrown in because why not. Coupled with some overly elaborate camera moves and a preposterous number of split-diopter shots, the stylistic overload will exhaust you just as much as the relentless and unpleasant bickering of the lead characters.

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