"Second Nature" is a cute little film about role reversals
a subject which has been tackled quite a few times before but never quite like this one.
Amanda (Collette Wolfe) is a lady who wants to run for mayor of Louisburg, now that a special election has been announced. However, Bret (Sam Huntington) seems like a shoe-in. After all, politics in Louisburg seems like an old boys' network where women aren't taken very seriously. She knows she could do a great job
if she only got the chance. Around this same time, her grandmother gives her what she claims is a magic mirror
and magic it certainly turns out to be! When Amanda and Bret are later arguing about the unfairness of male and female roles, they inadvertently use the mirror to change things
.to make it a world where women are like men and vice-versa.
As for Amanda, she really likes this new world. While the folks in town look like the same old folks she's known her whole life, they certainly don't act like them. In Ellenburg, women are in charge and men are often just seen as sex objects and bimbos. Because of this, it seems certain that Amanda will win the election and life just seems easier for her thanks to the mirror. At the same time, however, Bret is miserable. Women don't take him seriously and they spend so much of the time objectifying him and the other men! The problem is to return to their old lives, if it's even possible, they both need to find the mirror and unwish the wish
.but the mirror has disappeared and Amanda is just too darned happy in this new life!
The film has a lot of interesting things to say about men and women and couples no doubt will enjoy watching the film and talking about it afterwards (yes, men
.talk to your partner
it's a good thing!). The acting is very nice (particularly by Wolfe) and it's a light, enjoyable little comedy that made me smile. My only reservation is that at times the film is a bit too broad in how they portray the difference between the sexes and it is far from subtle
.whether in real life or the mirror universe. Overall, despite this minor problem, a clever and fun film that is hard not to like.
