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''What Women Want'' is a 2000 American romantic fantasy comedy film written by Josh Goldsmith, Cathy Yuspa, and Diane Drake, directed by
Nancy Meyers Nancy Jane Meyers (born December 8, 1949) is an American filmmaker. She has written, produced, and directed many critically and commercially successful films including ''Private Benjamin (1980 film), Private Benjamin'' (1980), ''Irreconcilable D ...
, and starring
Mel Gibson Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor, film director, and producer. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apoca ...
and Helen Hunt. The film earned mixed reviews from critics but was a box office success, with a North American domestic gross of $182 million and a worldwide gross of $374 million against a budget of $70 million. A loose remake, ''
What Men Want ''What Men Want'' is a 2019 American romantic comedy film directed by Adam Shankman and starring Taraji P. Henson, Aldis Hodge, Josh Brener, Erykah Badu, Richard Roundtree and Tracy Morgan. The film is a loose remake of the 2000 film ''What Wome ...
'', was released in 2019, starring Taraji P. Henson and
Aldis Hodge Aldis Alexander Basil Hodge (born September 20, 1986) is an American actor. Among his significant roles, he played Alec Hardison in the TNT series '' Leverage'', MC Ren in the 2015 biopic '' Straight Outta Compton'', Levi Jackson in the 2016 f ...
.


Plot

Nick Marshall, a
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
advertising executive, was raised by his
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
showgirl A showgirl is a female dancer or performer in a stage entertainment show intended to showcase the performer's physical attributes, typically by way of revealing clothing, toplessness, or nudity. History Showgirls date back to the late 180 ...
mother. Nick is a chauvinist skilled at selling products to men and seducing women. He expects to get a promotion at the advertising firm Sloane Curtis, but his manager Dan instead announces that he is hiring Darcy Maguire to broaden the firm's appeal to women. Meanwhile, Nick's estranged 15-year-old daughter Alex is staying with him while his former wife Gigi is on her honeymoon with her new husband Ted. Nick embarrasses Alex, who resents his over-protectiveness when he meets her boyfriend Cameron, who is 18 years old. Darcy tasks the staff, including Nick, to develop advertising ideas for a series of feminine products she distributes at the staff meeting. While testing a few items at home, Nick falls into his bathtub while holding an electric
hairdryer A hair dryer, hairdryer or blow dryer is an electromechanical device that blows ambient or hot air over damp hair to speed the evaporation of water to dry the hair. Blow dryers enable better control over the shape and style of hair, by accelerat ...
, shocking himself, and is knocked unconscious. The next morning, Nick awakens to discover he has a new gift: he can hear women's thoughts. He has an
epiphany Epiphany may refer to: * Epiphany (feeling), an experience of sudden and striking insight Religion * Epiphany (holiday), a Christian holiday celebrating the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ ** Epiphany season, or Epiph ...
, realizing that most women, especially at work, dislike him and consider him sleazy. He makes an impromptu visit to his former therapist, Dr. Perkins (who also disliked him), and she encourages him to use his newfound ability to his advantage. Nick telepathically eavesdrops on Darcy and purloins her ideas to use as his own, but gradually becomes attracted to her. Alex resents Nick's years of neglect, but they start to bond while he takes her shopping for a prom dress. After Nick telepathically finds out that Alex intends to sleep with Cameron the night of the prom, Nick attempts to give her some advice. He tells her Cameron is not interested in her for who she is, just for what he can do with her in bed. Alex, thinking Nick is being over-protective and trying to sabotage her prom, rejects his advice. Nick and Darcy spend more time together, becoming romantic. However, he steals Darcy's idea for a new
Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...
ad campaign An advertising campaign is a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme which make up an integrated marketing communication (IMC). An IMC is a platform in which a group of people can group their ideas, beliefs, and conc ...
aimed at women, though he later regrets his actions, especially as it leads to Dan firing Darcy. Nick persuades Dan to rehire Darcy, saying the ad was her idea and is eventually successful. Over time, Nick succeeds in repairing his relationships with female acquaintances, especially those at work. Nick loses his gift during a severe thunder and lightning storm while on his way to see the company secretary, Erin, who has been contemplating suicide. He offers her a position for which he had previously turned her down; she accepts. When Cameron dumps Alex at the prom for refusing to have sex, Nick finds and consoles her, cementing their newly-repaired relationship. Nick visits Darcy and explains everything. She fires him, but then forgives him, and they share a kiss.


Cast

*
Mel Gibson Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor, film director, and producer. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apoca ...
as Nick Marshall: A Chicago advertising executive, who acquires the gift to hear what women are thinking. * Helen Hunt as Darcy Maguire: Nick's co-worker who later becomes his love interest. *
Marisa Tomei Marisa Tomei ( , ; born December 4, 1964) is an American actress. She came to prominence as a cast member on '' The Cosby Show'' spin-off '' A Different World'' in 1987. After having minor roles in a few films, she came to international attentio ...
as Lola: Nick's former love interest, who works in a coffee shop and is trying to become an actress. *
Alan Alda Alan Alda (; born Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo; January 28, 1936) is an American actor, screenwriter, and director. A six-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award winner, he is best known for playing Captain Benjamin "Hawkeye" Pierce in the war come ...
as Dan Wanamaker, Nick's boss. * Ashley Johnson as Alex Marshall: Nick's daughter, who comes to stay with him, while her mom Gigi and stepdad Ted go on their honeymoon. She has a boyfriend named Cameron, who will "dump" her, after she declines sleeping with him right away. She at first has a rocky relationship with her dad, but in the end reconciles with him. *
Mark Feuerstein Mark Feuerstein (; born June 8, 1971) is an American actor, writer, producer and director. He had an early, recurring role in several episodes of '' Caroline in the City'', playing the title character's new boyfriend, and later gained notice in a ...
as Morgan Farwell *
Lauren Holly Lauren Holly (born October 28, 1963) is an American actress. She has played the roles of Deputy Sheriff Maxine Stewart in the television series ''Picket Fences'', NCIS Director Jenny Shepard in the series '' NCIS'', Dr. Betty Rogers on '' Motiv ...
as Gigi: Nick's ex-wife, mother of Alex, and just married to Ted; they leave on their honeymoon in the first scenes. *
Delta Burke Delta Ramona Leah Burke (born July 30, 1956) is an American actress, producer, and author. From 1986 to 1991, she starred as Suzanne Sugarbaker in the CBS sitcom ''Designing Women'', for which she was nominated for two Emmy Awards for Outstan ...
as Eve *
Valerie Perrine Valerie Ritchie Perrine (born September 3, 1943) is an American actress. For her role as Honey Bruce in the 1974 film ''Lenny'', she won the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles, the Cannes Film Festival Award for Bes ...
as Margo *
Judy Greer Judith Therese Evans (born July 20, 1975), known professionally as Judy Greer, is an American actress. She is primarily known as a character actress, who has appeared in a wide variety of films. She first rose to prominence in a variety of suppor ...
as Erin: A copy girl at Nick's workplace who is always ignored, had been turned down indirectly by Nick for a promotion, and is contemplating suicide. *
Sarah Paulson Sarah Catharine Paulson (born December 17, 1974) is an American actress. She began her acting career in New York City stage productions before starring in the short-lived television series ''American Gothic (1995 TV series), American Gothic'' ...
as Annie: Nick's secretary, a job limited to running menial errands for Nick, which she sees as degrading, in light of her
Ivy League The Ivy League is an American collegiate athletic conference comprising eight private research universities in the Northeastern United States. The term ''Ivy League'' is typically used beyond the sports context to refer to the eight schools ...
education. She has a boyfriend who lives in Israel. *
Ana Gasteyer Ana Kristina Gasteyer (born May 4, 1967) is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1996 to 2002. She has since starred in such sitcoms as ABC's '' Suburgatory,'' TBS's ''People of Earth'', NBC's ...
as Sue Cranston *
Lisa Edelstein Lisa or LISA may refer to: People People with the mononym * Lisa Lisa (born 1967), American actress and lead singer of the Cult Jam * Lisa (Japanese musician, born 1974), stylized "LISA", Japanese singer and producer * Lisa Komine (born 1978), J ...
as Dina *
Loretta Devine Loretta Devine (born August 21, 1949) is an American actress, singer and voice actor. She is known for numerous roles across stage and screen. Her most high profile roles include Lorrell Robinson in the original Broadway production of '' Dreamg ...
as Flo *
Diana-Maria Riva Diana-Maria Riva (born July 22, 1969) is an American actress, known for her performances on television. She was regular cast member in series including '' Philly'' (2001-02), ''Side Order of Life'' (2007), '' The Good Guys'' (2010), ''Telenovela ...
as Stella *
Eric Balfour Eric Salter Balfour (born April 24, 1977) is an American actor and singer. He is the lead singer of Born as Ghosts, formerly known as Fredalba. He made his film debut in the drama ''Shattered Image'' (1998), followed by roles in ''What Women Want' ...
as Cameron: Alexandra's much older boyfriend, who is manipulative and abandons the relationship, after she tells him that she is not ready to sleep with him after the prom. *
Logan Lerman Logan Wade Lerman (born January 19, 1992) is an American actor. He is known for playing the titular role in the fantasy-adventure ''Percy Jackson'' films. He appeared in commercials in the mid-1990s, before starring in the series ''Jack & Bobb ...
as Young Nick Marshall * Robert Briscoe Evans as Ted: Second husband of Gigi and stepfather of Alexandra. He leaves with Gigi at the beginning of the movie to go on their honeymoon. *
Alex McKenna Alex McKenna is an American actress and voice-over artist. She gained fame by playing Petunia Stupid in ''The Stupids'' (1996) and Mickey Apple in '' You Wish'' (1997). She resumed her acting career with guest appearances in CW hit teen drama ...
as Alexandra's friend * Bette Midler as Dr. J. M. Perkins (uncredited)


Reception

''What Women Want'' made $33.6 million during its opening weekend. The film topped the box office upon opening, dethroning ''
How the Grinch Stole Christmas ''How the Grinch Stole Christmas!'' is a Christmas children's story by Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel written in rhymed verse with illustrations by the author. It follows the Grinch, a grouchy, solitary creature who tries to cancel Christmas by st ...
''. Additionally, it had the highest December opening weekend of all time, surpassing ''
Scream 2 ''Scream 2'' is a 1997 American slasher film directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson. It stars Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courteney Cox, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jamie Kennedy, Laurie Metcalf, Jerry O'Connell, Elise Neal, Tim ...
''. This record would last until 2001 when ''
Ocean's Eleven ''Ocean's Eleven'' is a 2001 American heist comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh from a screenplay by Ted Griffin. The first installment in the ''Ocean's'' film trilogy, it is a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film of the same name. The ...
'' took it. For its second weekend, ''What Women Want'' was overtaken by Helen Hunt's other film ''
Cast Away ''Cast Away'' is a 2000 American survival drama film directed and produced by Robert Zemeckis and starring Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, and Nick Searcy. Hanks plays a FedEx troubleshooter stranded on an uninhabited island after his plane crashes in ...
''. It went on to make $182.8 million domestically and $374.1 million worldwide.


Critical response

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
gave the film an approval rating of 54% based on 122 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Even though Gibson is a good sport in his role, ''What Women Want'' is a rather conventional, fluffy comedy-romance that doesn't make good use of its premise." On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
the film has a score of 47 out of 100, based on 33 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". On CinemaScore, audiences gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale. In a lukewarm review, Kimberley Jones of ''
The Austin Chronicle ''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogr ...
'' praised Gibson's performance and likened parts of the film to classic
screwball comedies Screwball comedy is a subgenre of the romantic comedy genre that became popular during the Great Depression, beginning in the early 1930s and thriving until the early 1940s, that satirizes the traditional love story. It has secondary characterist ...
, but felt the ending became a "dull, drawn-out morality play". Roger Ebert wrote the movie "doesn't flow so much as leap from one good scene to another over the crevices of flat scenes in between ... it's not boring and is often very funny". Stephanie Zacharek of ''
Salon.com ''Salon'' is an American politically progressive/ liberal news and opinion website created in 1995. It publishes articles on U.S. politics, culture, and current events. Content and coverage ''Salon'' covers a variety of topics, including re ...
'' was critical: "Although ''What Women Want'' is being marketed toward women, it does nothing but condescend to them."


Awards

For his portrayal of Nick Marshall, Gibson was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actor—Comedy/Romance. Hunt won the latter award in the Favorite Actress—Comedy/Romance category, while Mark Feuerstein and Marisa Tomei each received a nomination in the supporting categories. It also garnered Tomei a nod for the
Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture The Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture is one of the Satellite Awards presented annually by the International Press Academy The International Press Academy (IPA) is an American association of professional entertainm ...
, while Ashley Johnson was nominated at the
Young Artist Awards The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...
. For his score, composer
Alan Silvestri Alan Anthony Silvestri (born March 26, 1950) is an American composer and conductor of film and television scores. He has been associated with director Robert Zemeckis since 1984, composing music for all of his feature films including the ''Ba ...
won the ASCAP Award for Top Box Office Films, it received a Saturn Award nomination for " Best Fantasy Film" from the
Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films is an American non-profit organization established in 1972 dedicated to the advancement of science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Academy is headquarter ...
, US. The film also won the Bogey Award in Platin from the
Bogey Awards The Bogey Award (officially Box Office Germany Award) is a German film award. It's based on the number of people seeing a film within a given time frame. The prize has been awarded by the industry's trade journal ''Blickpunkt: Film'' since 1997. ...
, Germany. It was also nominated for the Best Casting for Feature Film, Comedy from the Casting Society of America, US. It received the Golden Screen Award in Germany.


Legacy


Sequel/remake

In 2009, the website Pajiba published an article reporting that producer and scriptwriter Peter Chiarelli was working on a sequel, which would re-imagine the concept from the viewpoint of a woman who could hear men's thoughts.
Cameron Diaz Cameron Michelle Diaz (born August 30, 1972) is an American actress. With a variety of works in film, she is widely recognised for her work in romantic comedies and animation. Diaz has received various accolades, including nominations for ...
was courted to star as its lead. The film was released in 2019 as ''
What Men Want ''What Men Want'' is a 2019 American romantic comedy film directed by Adam Shankman and starring Taraji P. Henson, Aldis Hodge, Josh Brener, Erykah Badu, Richard Roundtree and Tracy Morgan. The film is a loose remake of the 2000 film ''What Wome ...
'' with Taraji P. Henson in the lead role.


Foreign market remakes

A Chinese remake directed by Chen Daming starring
Andy Lau Andy Lau Tak-wah (; born 27 September 1961) is a Hong Kong actor, singer-songwriter and film producer. He has been one of Hong Kong's most commercially successful film actors since the mid-1980s, performing in more than 160 films while maint ...
and
Gong Li Gong Li ( Chinese: 巩俐; born 31 December 1965) is a Chinese actress. She starred in three of the four Chinese-language films that were nominated for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. Gong was born in Shenyang, Liaonin ...
was released in 2011. ''
Aga Bai Arrecha! ''Aga Bai Arrechha!'' () is a Marathi comedy drama film by director Kedar Shinde loosely based on the Hollywood film ''What Women Want''. It was released in 2004. The film highlights the life and the problems of a common man living in a metr ...
'' in 2004 is a Marathi film directed by
Kedar Shinde Kedar Shinde (Marathi pronunciation: ed̪aːɾ ʃin̪d̪e born 16 January 1973) is an Indian film director and writer from Mumbai, India. Personal life and family Kedar Shinde was born on 16 January 1973 in Mumbai, India. Shinde completed h ...
from India that is loosely based on ''What Women Want''.


References


External links

* * * * * * * {{Nancy Meyers 2000 films 2000s fantasy comedy films 2000 romantic comedy films 2000s romantic fantasy films American fantasy comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic fantasy films 2000s English-language films Films about advertising Films directed by Nancy Meyers Films produced by Bruce Davey Films scored by Alan Silvestri Films set in Chicago Films shot in Chicago Films shot in Los Angeles Icon Productions films Paramount Pictures films Films about telepathy Magic realism films Films set in offices 2000s American films