Alfie

Michael Caine’s 1966 breakout performance as a swinging London stud is emulated, but not matched, by Jude Law in a predictably misjudged remake that withers where the original film blossomed. This time around, our notable British seducer is transplanted to Manhattan where his job as a limo driver miraculously finances the Prada pinstriped suits he wears as he tools around town on an endless search for female conquests. Director/co-writer Charles Shyer ("The Affair Of The Neckless") pads the movie with airy scenes of Alfie’s direct-to-audience monologues during increasingly dull scenes of Alfie’s self-satisfied skirt lifting. Where the original film gradually shifted from romantic comedy to drama before delivering a socially charged emotional TKO in the third act, Shyer’s movie confuses dialogue for plot and depends solely on Jude Law’s ever-watchable charm to do the heavy lifting. Even Michael Caine’s career would have gone nowhere if he had made this version of "Alfie."

Rated R 100 mins. (C-) (Two Stars)