''Because I Said So'' is a 2007 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...

film directed by

Michael Lehmann Michael Stephen Lehmann (born March 30, 1957) is an American film and television director known for directing the dark comedy ''Heathers''. Early life and education In 1978, Lehmann graduated from Columbia University.

and starring

Diane Keaton Diane Keaton (''née'' Hall, born January 5, 1946) is an American actress and director. She has received various accolades throughout her career spanning over six decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Glo ...

Mandy Moore Amanda Leigh Moore (born April 10, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to fame with her debut single, "Candy (Mandy Moore song), Candy", which peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Her de ...

, Lauren Graham,

Piper Perabo Piper Lisa Perabo () (born October 31, 1976) is an American actress. Following her breakthrough in the comedy-drama film '' Coyote Ugly'' (2000), she starred in ''The Prestige'' (2006), ''Angel Has Fallen'' (2019), and as CIA agent Annie Walke ...

Gabriel Macht Gabriel Swann Macht (born January 22, 1972) is an American actor and film producer, known for portraying Harvey Specter in the USA Network series '' Suits'' (2011–2019) and the title character in the 2008 superhero film ''The Spirit''. Earl ...

Tom Everett Scott Thomas Everett Scott (born September 7, 1970) is an American actor. His film work includes a starring role as drummer Guy Patterson in the film ''That Thing You Do!'', the protagonist in ''An American Werewolf in Paris'', and notable roles in ...

and

Stephen Collins Stephen Weaver Collins (born October 1, 1947) is an American former actor and writer. He is known for playing Eric Camden on the television series '' 7th Heaven'' from 1996 to 2007. Afterwards, Collins played the roles of Dayton King on the ABC ...

. It was released on February 2, 2007. It was panned by critics, calling it the worst movie of the year.

Plot

Daphne (

), is the loving but over-bearing mother of three women. Her other daughters Maggie ( Lauren Graham) and Mae (

) are happily married, but her youngest daughter Milly (

) recently broke up with her boyfriend, and Daphne is concerned. Daphne fears that her daughter cannot find a good man on her own, so she secretly places a personal ad for her daughter. She finds a potential candidate, Jason (

), and tries to orchestrate a chance meeting of the two. The plan seems flawless until Milly finds her own date, guitarist Johnny (

), who happens to be a candidate Daphne rejected before. Milly is unaware of her mother's scheming and begins relationships with both Jason and Johnny at the same time, with neither aware of the other. Inevitably, this double-dating takes its toll and Milly becomes estranged from both Jason and Johnny. Meanwhile, Daphne stumbles upon her own perfect match after being alone for many years and begins to challenge her search for the perfect match for Milly. Milly also realizes she has a choice to be the daughter her mother wants her to be, or to be the woman she wants herself to be. Choosing the latter, which comes with a row with her mother, leads her to reconcile with Johnny, a relationship Daphne has realized she should have tried to orchestrate in the first place.

Cast

Marketing

The film has a marketing tie-in allowing customers to buy panties with different sayings from the movie.

Reception

Box office

In its first weekend of release, the film placed second in total box office receipts. For the weekend of February 2, 2007, the film earned $13,022,000. As of April 5, 2007; its domestic gross was $42,674,040. According to Box Office Guru, "men showed practically zero interest in the Universal release. Studio research showed that 82% of the audience was female. 55% of the turnout was 35 or older. 83% was Caucasian."

Critical reception

Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale. William Booth of the ''Washington Post'' rated it the worst movie of 2007. Diane Keaton's performance in the film earned her a

Golden Raspberry Award The Golden Raspberry Awards (also known as the Razzies and Razzie Awards) is a parody award show honoring the worst of cinematic under-achievements. Co-founded by UCLA film graduates and film industry veterans John J. B. Wilson and Mo Murphy, ...

nomination for Worst Actress, where she lost to Lindsay Lohan for ''

I Know Who Killed Me ''I Know Who Killed Me'' is a 2007 American psychological thriller film directed by Chris Sivertson, written by Jeff Hammond, and starring Lindsay Lohan, Julia Ormond, Neal McDonough and Brian Geraghty. The film's story revolves around a young ...

''.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Because I Said So (Film) 2007 films 2007 romantic comedy films American romantic comedy films 2000s English-language films Films about weddings Films directed by Michael Lehmann Universal Pictures films Films about dysfunctional families Films about online dating Films scored by David Kitay Gold Circle Films films Films about mother–daughter relationships 2000s American films