Yet another generic chick flick some might say and 'they' would be spot on in some ways. But this little story of love, lust and yearning is slightly different in its storytelling. It tells the tale of a group of interconnected twenty and thirty somethings navigating their way through the shallow end of the dating pool right up through to shark infested waters of married life. The group are trying to read the messages of the opposite sex with the hope of being the ‘exception’ to the rule and securing themselves a happy ending. Sound a bit like Love Actually?
With a stellar cast including Ben Affleck, Jennifer Aniston, Justin long and Scarlett Johansen, this film isn’t short on pretty faces. Each play a stereotypical role in the dating game, from ‘the other woman’ to the committed singleton.
Gigi (Ginnifer Goodwin) is an insecure single gal trying to decipher the male psyche. The narrator of the film and a sucker for schmaltz, she goes on several dates which she thinks have been successful, each ending in exchanged phone numbers and promises of reunion. That is where it gets confusing. In the midst of Gigi getting all giddy and giggly thinking ‘he’s going to call’, she doesn’t realise that the message he was actually giving off was ‘I don’t think this will work out.’ In comes Alex (Justin Long of Dodgeball fame) to help our Gigi decode the vague and hazy message that men give (spoken like a true female -Nikesh) . The rules are simple. If he likes you, he will call. If he doesn’t, he won’t. Simple as pie.
Alongside this, we have our other couples, Neal (Affleck) and Beth (Aniston) who are the committed singles, although sweet together not particularly the marriage types. Polar opposites, Ben(Cooper) and Janine (Connolly) are a happily married couple who have lost the early hazy spark. So what happens? He cheats. His uncontrollable animalism takes over leading to a torrid affair with Anna (Johansson) his curvaceous yoga instructor.
The film twists and turns through each of these couples’ love lives, teaching women the simple rules of men and their ‘signals’. It points out that women love to think of a million and one reasons why a man isn’t calling you, isn’t interested in you, or isn’t sleeping with you. The simple truth of it all is, that if a man doesn't act interested, it's probably because he's not interested. It's a simple premise and one that some women may find slightly patronising
However, its a film that serves as a wake-up call for men and women alike. It is a tad on the long side but is still full of sitcom wit and drama enough to keep us all entertained on a friday evening. It isn’t up there with the masters of chick flicks, but it is a solid attempt nonetheless.
Grade: C+ (6/10)
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