"I'm not going to divorce you...I'm goig in there, and I'm going to spend every last cent you have"
---Elaine May to Walter Mathau in CALIFORNIA SUITE

Hughey Lewis is a karaoke (karateoke) hustler who receives news of an ex-girlfriend's death. He goes to pay his respects and meets their daughter (Gwynneth Paltrow), a 3rd generation Las Vegas Showgirl. Maria Bello is a hustler who just happens to sing, crosses paths with a philosophical cab-driver (Scott Speedman). Paul Giamatti is a zombielike salesman who sometimes doesn't know what city he is in. His life is changed when he leaves home to get some cigarettes and ends up in a karaoke bar. His destiny is intertwined with an ex-con (Andre Braugher) who has made "bad choices" in the past. These three duets are on their way to Omaha to compete in a karaoke contest with a $5000 prize.

This is a quirky film, highly improbable (mostly unconvincing) situations and characters. Giamatti and Braugher have the best chemistry and plot lines. Braugher happens to be the best actor and singer of the bunch. Paltrow successfully conveys a vulnerability and sings ok too. The problem with her voice is that it sometimes disappears during dialogue (some sort of technical flaw?) and is incomprehensible. Bello is sexy and bitchy (she may become typecast in these type of roles) who caves into her insecurities later. Lewis and Speedman are stiffs. Giamatti's "escaping from his prison" keeps this from becoming a bad melodrama

B-

Brief nudity, rough language, some violence.