Finding Lacey in an Elevator
Having been made a partner at his law firm, Jonathan (Ryan Merriman - Final Destination 3) is on his way to a celebration party when he gets stuck in a lift with Liberty (Lacey Chabert - The Sweetest Christmas), a free flowing spirit who is there as part of the catering staff. Despite being very different they hit it off and with a bit of meddling from Jonathan's secretary, Rosemary (Patty McCormack), they start dating. But whilst in love their different outlooks on work become a sticking point, especially when a distracted Jonathan starts making a few mistakes at the office.
So there are absolutely no surprises when it comes to "Elevator Girl" and you could say it works its way through the chalk n cheese romantic comedy playbook. So we get the meet cute, which here is Jonathan and Liberty being stuck in a lift together during a power cut, where they get to know each other. We get them falling in love over a series of nice little dates, the honeymoon period where they are oblivious to their differences whilst their best friends aren't. Of course the honeymoon period comes to an end when career pressure intervenes and their differences become apparent to them before, well with "Elevator Girl" being a TV Movie and romantic comedy means happy ever after ending.
But whilst there is not a single surprise in "Elevator Girl" it works because it is simple, pleasant and inoffensive. We have likeable characters, the sweet dates are cute, the romantic moments are romantic and the occasional moment of humour make you smile. In fact because you can guess what is coming it actually works in its favour because you are not concentrating on the story but just enjoying the various cliche elements which crop up.
The other reason it is pleasant is down to Lacey Chabert because as Liberty it is easy to fall in love with her. Here is a nice girl, kind to everyone, patient and generous with a wonderful smile, it may not be the most original of characters but it doesn't matter because quite simply Liberty is lovely. And Chabert works well with Ryan Merriman as Jonathan who does a decent job of showing the different sides to his character, the career focused lawyer who becomes distracted when ever he is with Liberty. Although in many ways Patty McCormack out shines them all as Jonathan's secretary, Rosemary, because of her wonderful meddling in Jonathan's love life to get him and Liberty together despite his concerns over her being just a waitress.
What this all boils down to is that "Elevator Girl" is a routine chalk n cheese romantic comedy with not a single surprise or deviation from the formula set out by others. But it works because it is fun, pleasant and has a certain charm about it thanks to Lacey Chabert who exudes niceness in every single scene.
