If you like Renée Zellweger as Lucy Hill in “New Town” then you will probably like her in “What If.” But if you like her as “Bridget Jones” or “Nurse Betty,” chances are that you won’t like “What If.”
This is by no means suggesting that comic actors cannot take on serious roles. Because we have seen actors such as Jamie Foxx, Will Smith and Melissa McCarthy juggle between genres. However, Zellweger’s performance in this series was lacklustre.
In “What If,” Zellweger plays Anne Montgomery, a venture capitalist. Jane Levy plays a scientist named Lisa. Lisa is married to bartender and firefighter, Sean (Blake). Lisa has been seeking funding for her biotech start-up but had been unsuccessful. After an unexpected turn of events, Blake meets Montogomery while bartending. Montgomery, decides to make a significant investment in Lisa’s company. But the investment will threaten Lisa’s marriage to Sean.
“What If” is off to an exciting start. Episodes 1 (Pilot) and 2 (What Now) leave you expectant. There are references to the 1993 film “Indecent Proposal” but it is deceptive. And when you realise it, most of the excitement disappears. Thereafter, the series slows down. It would seem the series is exploring trust in relationships and how one bad decision can have a ripple effect which could be very damaging. But later on, you realise that it is not about business for Ms Montgomery. It is personal. Yet by episode 7, the series has gone nowhere and her motives are still unclear.
Montgomery is supposed to be a fierce feminist in “What If”, but the grandeur is absent and the series is generally lacking oomph! However, you will learn something about the saying, ‘the end justifies the means.’
