The Joneses (Borte, 2009)

***Contains spoilers***

Like a blend of Stepford Wives meets Desperate Housewives meets the OC, The Joneses is a somewhat bizarre mix that doesn't really work.

The idea is thus; An elegant, aspirational new family move into an already elegant and aspirational neighbourhood, as sort of Wisteria Lane for golfers. The family go about introducing themselves to their eclectic group of neighbours until, not too far into the film, the twist is revealed; the family are not actually a family, they are a group of salespeople thrown together with the intent of imitating the perfect family, selling the perfect lifestyle to their neighbours.

For me, the revelation of the twist came far too soon; a lot more suspense could have been created if the reason for the strange behaviour was not revealed until later.

The cast (Demi Moore, David Duchovny, Amber Heard, Ben Hollingsworth), although neither unattractive nor untalented, lack a certain je ne sais quoi as an ensemble; the chemistry between the "parents" of the family is lacking, despite their supposed extra-curricular attraction. The romantic thread of the plotline is somewhat predictable, and even the death of The Joneses' neighbour, an apparently poignant and guilt-evoking moment in the film, raises little emotion.

Overall, this film has the makings of a good idea, but is not executed in a way to fulfill the potential.