Excess Baggage

source: Excess Baggage

"Excess Baggage" tells of a rich brat (Silverstone) who kidnaps herself and becomes a victim of her own escapade when a car thief (Del Toro) unwittingly steals her by stealing her car while she's hiding in the trunk. What follows is a convoluted little romcom frolic which earned Silverstone a Razzie nod and is somewhere on the Silverstone scale way below "Clueless" and "Blast From the Past". Nonetheless, with Del Toro and Walken carrying much of the load, this flick is just quirky enough around the edges to make it a pleasant albeit unoriginal (chop shop escape ripped off from "Adventure in Babysitting", etc.) no brainer for Silverstone fans and romcom junkies. (C+)

I have to admit, there was something really undefined I loved about this movie. Yeah the script needed a little work, and maybe the actors could have done a tit bit of a better job. But overall it really touched me in that sweet/sadistic way. I mean that's what we all want right? To be cared about, and it just shows how far sometimes people will go for it. And OH YEAH Benicio Del Toro is such a triple threat.. He's extremely hot, He's Italian and he's an amazing actor. So whatever movie you put him in, it has a really good chance of touching someone. Overall I give this movie a 7. I think it deserves at least that.

I rented this movie thinking that everybody had been too hard on poor Alicia, who had been wonderful in Clueless and sexy in many an Aerosmith video. I was wrong. It might have been due in part to the non-existent script, but Alicia showed no screen presence at all. Instead, she smoked and drank during the entire flick (is this the moviemakers' attempt to appeal to the teenage crowd this movie is aimed at??). Benicio del Toro's performance was all right, even though (or: because) he seemed to think he was in a remake to the 'Usual Suspects'. In all, if you see only a hundred movies this year, don't let this one be one of them.

I've always rather liked Christopher Walken... no matter what the role, he never seems to disappoint. Lately, I've begun to take an interest in Benicio Del Toro(specifically after I saw him in Sin City), as well. And Alicia Silverstone is usually pretty good. So when I heard of this film featuring all three of them being aired on TV, I thought, what the hey, I'll watch it, it might be fun. Turns out, I was wrong. It's not. Well, maybe slightly. But not a lot, and barely at all after the excitement of the first few minutes dies down. What follows is more than an hour and a half of dull, uninspired mediocrity. The plot is fair, and possibly original, but mostly uninteresting. The idea is old. The pacing is off. The characters are flat and stereotypical. The acting is reasonable, decent at best. The comedy is just not there. It tries way too hard to be funny, and winds up coming across as forced. There's really hardly anything at all in this film worth watching... there's a car-chase and some fun stuff at the very beginning, but I suggest you turn it off after that is done. It only goes downhill from there. I recommend this to huge fans of one or more of the three aforementioned actors. No one else should really bother. 5/10

I saw this movie a couple of years ago when my sister and her friends rented it. I remember thinking it was strange, but that's all. I came across it in the video store last night and was curious as to why I couldn't remember much about it. Well let me tell you, I'm glad I tried it again. The movie isn't great, the story drags a bit in the middle, and the two mob guys weren't the least bit scary. I also had a hard time with Silverstone's portrayal of Emily, who I understand was supposed to be a "troubled teen", but whose behavior was so unbelievably bad that I felt only distaste for her instead of the expected sympathy. But Walken and Del Toro are absolutely marvelous. They made it completely worth watching. Walken is his usual sinister self, but at the same time manages to make his Uncle Ray character seem very fatherly and concerned for Emily. In fact, they could have done away with the rather weak father altogether and nobody would even have noticed. Del Toro is fascinating as the shy, befuddled Vincent. Everything that came out of his mouth made me laugh, and you've got to like anyone who can see the good in a whiny wretch like Emily. He turns out to be exactly what she needs, and by the end of the movie she had mellowed so much that I didn't even hate her anymore. Watch for the scenes in the hotel room and next morning by the lake where the tentative lovers make a surprisingly touching connection. This was the best five minutes of the movie for me. All in all, a simple but fairly sweet movie, made better by the outstanding, endearing performances by the two male leads. Don't go into it expecting too much, and you'll have fun with this little bit of fluff that far too many people have been scared away from because of the bad reviews. Just give it a chance. Trust me.

I read quite a few reviews around the time this film was released and they were all very negative towards it. Don't ask me why I rented it (probably in a moment of maddness) cos I had very low expectations of what it was going to be like but actually I didn't think it was that bad a film... I like Benicio Del Toro - if you don't like him or can't get to grips with the way he speaks etc then your probably instantly going to hate this film - I think he is an interesting character in real life and I think he made this film a little more interesting too... Silverstone was just basically Silverstone - I feel sorry for her its been pretty much down hill since Clueless, shes always playing these richgirl/brat characters there is no real variety..but shes ok - nothing special - Walken was as usual solid as a rock, Harry Connick Jnr cracked me up for some reason I thought he was funny! Plot - I could see where it wanted to go but it didn't quite get there - it wasnt quite clever enough - I don't think it was a fabulous film by any means but compare it to Batman and Robin? Speed 2? Its not as bad as that! Rent it if you are a Benicio/Alicia/Walken fan but otherwise you'll probably just feel robbed...

Don't be put off by the negative comments you may have read, this is a lighthearted enjoyable film. It's more a romantic drama than a comedy however and those expecting a comedy will probably be disappointed. While it is not the best film ever made it will certainly entertain you on a rainy day.

When I rented this movie, I didn't have too high expectations to what it was going to be like, but even so I must admit I was disappointed. I wanted to watch this movie, part because I enjoyed the easy going humor in "Clueless", and part because I like Alicia Silverstone as a young actress. But neither of these two reasons were enough to make me like Excess Baggage at all. The movie lacks a good plot, and is rather boring after a while. All though Silverstone put up a half decent performance, Benicio Del Toro didn't get his role together, and stood out like a sore thumb. A good tip: don't waste your money OR your time on this boring and dumb movie...