Maybe I am a little biased but that's not the point. This movie is very unique. It incorporates Samuel Coleridge's poem Rhyme (Rime) of the Ancient Mariner into its plot. Jennifer Love Hewitt, although listed as a main character, actually has a small, but hilarious part. Matthew Lillard also has a small part but his strange behaviour is entertaining. Although Peter Facinelli is considered the main character, Dash Mihok is totally the main character. Not only is he hot as gold at melting point, but he is way talented. His acting shines through this role. He probably the only redeeming part of the movie. (Ok, I am totally obsessed with him.) the movie is a good movie to watch at least once because it evokes thought and has a positive message. There are a few grotesque things in the movie.
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Emma Woodhouse2 April 2002
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ChakaMan13 July 1999Even my love, Jennifer Love Hewitt, can't pull this one out of trouble.
This movie is a fence-walk between an intriguing independent film and a trendy, likeable Hollywood teen-flick (ala Dazed and Confused). But, unlike Dazed and confused, it's just short of intriguing and way short of likeable.
The movie contains scenes that are PAINFULLY drawn out and exaggerated, and the characters completely lack depth. Because of my age, I'm trying to picture these people as my peers, and I'm cringing.
The story develops too slowly and, because of that, the "climax" is such a let down that you can't even believe that anyone working on the movie could make a decision about where to end it. But you're glad someone did. -
llihilloh14 January 2001I don't normally think twice about movies that are this nauseating, but after realizing just how lame this is, I am forced to share my opinions.
For the most part, three words can be used to describe 'Telling You', and I have already used them. Everything from the first word to the last scene was dreadful. Was this film trying to make a point about something? If it was, I totally missed it. I accidentally stumbled across this movie one night. After watching it, I tried to remember if I had ever heard anything about it before. I hadn't. This just goes to prove that it is not worth seeing.
The plot was a disaster. What exactly was it again? All I can remember is that it mostly took place in a pizza joint. The writing was so boring, I found it almost impossible to stay awake. Scene after scene was humiliating on the actor's part. Not to mention the crew's.
One thing that I found the most laughable, was the actors. Matthew Lilliard is able to handle more entertaining films. So why would he agree to take part in this? Hewitt, who is not one of my most favorite actresses, is "supposedly" talented, defeats that purpose for joining into this group of loser acting. I can't even begin to wonder why anybody would have the nerve to have anything to do with this film. I will commend them on one thing and only one thing. - They had the decency to not laugh in the faces of whoever thought up this garbage.
I could rattle on and on about how much I obviously despised this film. Instead, I will let anyone who reads this, read the other comments because they are all basically the same. DON'T WHATEVER YOU DO, MAKE ANY ATTEMPT AT TRYING TO SIT THROUGH THIS. -
glad_fan16 December 1999The english title for this Movie is "Love Sucks" and I have to say after sitting through this garbage I must agree with the title. This has got to be the worst movie I have ever had the misfortune to sit through. Even Jennifer couldnt save this movie as her role was badly written and somewhat annoying. On the whole a must miss movie.
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BA_Harrison20 December 2016Two unmotivated college graduates, Phil Fazzulo (Peter Facinelli) and Dennis Nolan (Dash Mihok), settle for menial jobs at Sal Lombardo's pizza parlour. When the week's takings are stolen while Dennis is in charge, the pair enlist the help of their friends to throw a party to try and raise the missing sum of money.
For Love Sucks (AKA Telling You) writer director Rob DeFranco has taken his cues from the films of Kevin Smith (most notably, Clerks), with just a little Tarantino for good measure (the delivery of the opening 'dogshit' diatribe seemingly modelled after one of Quentin's meandering monologues). But where Smith and Tarantino have the ability to load their films with interesting individuals and sparkling dialogue, DeFranco fills this extremely dull drama with thoroughly irritating people indulging in unengaging conversation. Even the usually affable Matthew Lillard and Jennifer Love Hewitt prove totally obnoxious on this occasion.
Although labelled as a teen comedy, Love Sucks gave me nothing to laugh about. It was quite the painful experience. 1/10 -
willprindi24 April 2000Watch this movie, and you'll see why it didn't go nationwide. It just can't hold it's own.
Like most movies with young actors, yet no aliens or psychopaths, it was labeled a comedy. (Using stars from "Can't Hardly Wait" and "She's All That" doesn't help.) It's not. If you laugh aloud more than three times, you're probably drunk. I do agree with other reviewers that this movie would make an okay stage play, but as a movie, it's not targeting its ideal audience, assuming there IS one.
This movie looks as if it was being written as they filmed. How else would you explain their top billed stars, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Peter Facinelli, starting as main characters, then switching to comic relief. Meanwhile, the unknown Dash Mihok becomes the main character.
Not that he's a bad actor; his performance surpasses that of many of the others. Sadly, his character is so serious compared to the others that no chemistry exists to link them. Still, I wouldn't be surprised if we see him again soon.
As for the others, Hewitt and Matthew Lillard are the only ones cast in outright "bad" roles (and should be more worried about "The Audrey Hepburn Story" and "Wing Commander," respectively). This movie is too unknown to effectively damage any careers, anyway.
There were two things I did enjoy about this film. The first was how Mr. P (the hobo) turns out to be the hero from "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner." Unfortunately, not all viewers of teen movies share my interest in literary allusion. The second was the song, Soccer Ball, written by the director. I am, of course referring to when it's played during the closing credits by professionals, not when Facinelli "sings" it during the rave scene.
Overall, the video is good for insomniacs, provided they can find it.
My rating: 3. -
mhcupboard27 March 2008Saw this on Comedy Central last month. Some of it is downright silly but throughout there was something sad and honest about it. Facinelli and Mihok are great together. Scenes with the old man (who apparently is the Ancient Mariner of Coleridge's epic poem) are compelling but kind of seem out of place. Or maybe not- that's what I mean by weird. The movie has a confused leading character and the story doesn't exactly clear things up, but in a way, that's the point. The actors get to be outrageous but everyone knows these types of people so it's a believable world. Kinda reminds me of that idle time right after college, back at home, and not knowing what, if anything was going to become of life. Good parts, good ending, but it makes very amateur mistakes.
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drunkpete20034 May 2007This is the worst film you will ever see, please stay away from it. i have joined this site only to tell people not to watch this film, now i have to write 10 lines saying how bad it is. Its stupid, its not funny, i hate it, i told all my friends it was good so they would watch it and now they hate me, Jennifer Love Hewitt is hardly in it, please don't buy, rent, borrow this. How Emma Woodhouse says this is good is, i kinda hate her a bit, i'm sorry Emma, i'm sure you're a great girl but for real, this isn't a good film, 94 minutes of badness, i know this film as love sucks, no, this film sucks. Only one more line to go, but i could go on forever hating this film.
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cg-cgeorge8 March 2008Films are like fires, they start with a spark, warm up and build up the heat or they splutter out and die. This film is somewhere in between; there is a fire burning but it is just that someone comes along once in a while and throws cold water on it. To begin, the film is not really a comedy, it is a serious drama with light-hearted moments. Without the lighter moments you fear the story would be too heavy. What it really comes down to is whether you can empathise with the perfectly cast Dash Mihok as Dennis Nolan. If you've ever found yourself alone out in the yard at night wondering where life went wrong you will click in with Dennis and enjoy the story. So often Mihok manages to convey his pain and confusion without words, so you either understand him or you don't. The film so neatly sets out his problems and then neatly provides the answers. But like all films, there are the scenes we would like removed; the opening monologue by Peter Facinelli is painful and Jennifer Love Hewitt grossly over acts her minor part. The worst is a scene in a club where glamorous females sit alone at tables awaiting for any male to come up and sort out their life. This scene should be put back in the Male Fantasy file where it belongs, but apart from that it offers an original story and some brilliant acting (especially Jennifer Jostyn) though Facinelli's character is too shallow to show his great ability. I might add the original title 'Telling You' is perfect; I cannot believe that anyone who saw it would name it 'Love Sucks as it is marketed in the UK.
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Zalis18 January 2000Although everyone else who commented detested this movie, I liked it, a lot. I rented it a few months ago, and decided to buy it cheap last week. I think that the slow movement of it was a positive factor, and that it didn't overload or bombard the viewer. It was a lazy, relaxed, detached attitude; the perfect kind of movie to watch on a Sunday afternoon when feeling down on your luck. I think it might be better suited to interpretation as a play, because the action is more verbal than visual. It does make some attempt at developing characters, within its short runtime. The only part I disliked was the ending--unexpectedly abrupt and brief. I will also say, that this movie holds a "spot in my heart" for having perhaps the saddest moment I have ever seen in a movie. After Howard (the weird, smart, and nice guy of the five) spends much time and effort into interacting with a girl at the bar, he is brushed off in a terrible and heartbreaking manner that hit home because I know I'll be hearing the same line someday. . .
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k_sharp3 May 2002I caught this film on cable late last night. Admittedly I was desperate to find a film just to waste some time and while away the hours. Surprizingly though I found it really enjoyable. O.K., so it might be best to watch it between the ages of sixteen and twenty-four, although I, for one, look forward to the day when as a forty year old, I happen to be up late one night and find this film once again.
The sepia tinted, fuzziness of some scenes is just too corny to watch in comfort but stick it out and you'll probably enjoy this tale of regret and second-chances. The movie even alludes to literary value with its 'Ancient Mariner' motif; a valiant idea.
Perhaps this isn't the most glowing review. Circumstances dictated that I came across this purely at the right time but all the same, I know I'll remember this movie for a long time; a corny, yet seminal viewing, I'm telling you. -
jtr2001113 January 2006Denis Flood, the co-writer for this movie is an amazing writer. This was his first work but with a quality piece like this i'm sure he will be back with a second. I don't think this movie could get any better. I think that once D Flood's movies start getting recognized he will be one of the best writers in the world. His dialogs and plot line should make audiences around the world want to see this movie. D Flood will soon be a self made millionaire. Wow, I am going to start a D Flood fan club. Don't u wish your writer was hot like D Flood. D Flood's writing skills are as hot as the Moho Region... no actually as hot as the inner core. The next volcano over the Haiwian hot spot will be named D FLOOD and will be a super volcano that will shoot amazing stories into filmmakers hands around the world. Can D Flood beat his already amazing writing skills with his next movie.. i don't know, do you?
D Flood Rep. -
unpop13 November 2000Potentially misleading - Jennifer Love Hewitt's top billing
for a minor character - but, appealing nonetheless. A
pizza store serves as a backdrop for ruminations on life & lost opportunities. Hard to figure whether the film
embraces or condemns the job as measure of success ethos; count this confusion as a strength. Sad to say,
Hewitt annoys as a shrill novice fashion-designer - misses "cute" sliding straight into "grating". The opening dog s*** tale's good (minus the punchline) & "Soccer Ball" is the greatest tune The Offspring never
wrote. What's with the Coleridge reference? Quality Low-Bud effort. -
lasten-657237 June 2019I was stranded on a desert island with nothing but the clothes on my back, a bottle of water, and a Sony dvd portalable player with a copy of telling you. That masterpiece of a film got me through 7 long years in the Borneo jungle, also shout out to the Sony player battery life.
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bfranci23 October 1999This movie is a pathetic waste of time, with a pathetic script, following pathetic characters. The two main characters are recent college graduates who ... are working in a pizza shop? If there was a plot here I didn't see it...basically a bunch of burnouts bumbling through life without a plan. If you're going to see a guilty pleasure high school movie, rent She's all That or Can't Hardly Wait (which, ironically, feature large portions of the cast from this movie). Those are much better done than this drivel.
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clownbaby-0600629 May 2023Yes, I said it. This movie rivals those crossroads movies where characters are stuck and not sure what to do or where to go. The various conversations are both interesting and true-to-life. They talk about life, choices, and what could have been. These are things everyone has thought about unless they've had an easy, charmed life. All the bad reviews are due to a bunch of frat boys who have no emotional depth and no patience to watch a movie without tons of explosions. This movie makes you think. Makes you feel. The cast does a great job, too. I honestly think most of the bad reviews are because people wanted to write a "clever" title involving "telling you"; everyone made the same joke, it's pretty pathetic. Anyway, go see this movie if you like crossroads movies that are contemplative and introspective (think Dazed and Confused, Everybody Wants Some).
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mprichardson23 April 2004A few years ago, I went to the video store full of joy. The Matrix had been recently released and I was aching to see it again. My girlfriend of the time made me choose this instead claiming it was more the kind of thing we could both watch.
I have still never forgiven her. It has been six years.
The plot, as I recall, opens with a long anecdote about a scorned woman. It almost (but not quite) looks like it could be funny. Then the whole film becomes lazy and badly written. It has the feel of a really cheap novel, or something a teenager might write. There is little plot, little dialogue and less interest.
This is very poor film making, and I want those 90 minutes of my life back. -
ThatKat18 September 1999I rented this movie because I'm a fan of Jennifer Love Hewitt, and I'm actually glad I did so I could warn other unsuspecting fans off this slow, boring and completely pointless production. The only positive comment I can make is that I was actually quite pleased with JLH's performance as the hyper and audible Deb Friedman. Peter Facinelli served little purpose except to give myself and other female viewers some delicious eye candy; his "Badda Boom Badda Bing" accent was a complete turnoff and totally over the top. The most abhorrent feature of this film, rather than the plot (which, in all truthfulness, I didn't even understand, and the film ended without me even knowing what happened) was the performance of Dash Mihok. Besides having no chemistry with the other members of the cast (especially the girl he lusted after), his delivery is bland and at times incomprehensible. Bottom line, avoid this stinker at all costs.
No stars. -
nevehater1 November 2000"All money hangin' out like a big ol' pimp!" If you've seen this movie, you'll probably remember this line. I love Matthew Lillard. But this movie was really bad! His parts were pretty funny, but the rest of the movie was just kinda thrown together. I didn't like it at all!
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kibler@adelphia.net7 October 2003Telling You (1999) Peter Facinelli, Dash Mihok, Gary Wolf, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Matthew Lillard, Gina Phillips, Jennifer Jostyn, Frank Medrano, D: Robert DeFranco. Two brother-like buddies (Facinelli, Mihok) get hard luck running the local pizzeria in this teen-comedy. Not even a good-looking cast can salvage this turkey from being worthless, boring, and plain as the nose on your face. Running Time: 94 minutes and rated R for language and brief sexual content. * ½