Tags
Alec Baldwin, Comedy, Drama, It's Complicated, John Krasinski, Lake Bell, Meryl Streep, Movie, Romance, Steve Martin
do a Jim look...c'mon, do it...do it!
R
Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, Steve Martin, John Krasinski, Lake Bell
Jake: I’m sorry.
Jane: How far back does that ‘sorry’ go?
Jake: How far back do you need it to go?
Jane: Way back.
While in New York for her son’s graduation, Jane (Streep) starts up an affair with her remarried ex-husband, Jake (Baldwin). Meanwhile, Jane and Adam (Martin), an architect she’s hired, start to take a liking to each other as well.
If I had to sum this one up quickly, I’d say it’s funny, but way too long. There are several repetitive scenes that could have been trimmed down or cut altogether. The pace just seemed…slow.
Streep is good as always, and she and Baldwin work well together. Steve Martin was alright as Adam, but I didn’t really believe his and Jane’s relationship. Martin wasn’t really given much opportunity to show his comedic side (other than a tired, inappropriately high at a party scene), so his character just came off as a little bland and unmemorable. As Streep and Baldwin’s future son in law, Harley, John Krasinski manages to score some laughs in the few scenes that he has, so fans of The Office will probably enjoy seeing him doing something marginally different. Though I did keep expecting him to look at the camera and give the classic Jim face.
Let’s face it, though, the movie belongs to Streep, and she’s mostly up to the task. I did grow a little weary of her character, and the whole scenario in general, but not so much that I stopped enjoying the film entirely. I was just ready for it to be over a little bit before it was ready to be over.
I can’t say I loved it, but I certainly liked it for the most part. I guess you could say my opinion of it is…well, it’s com-…plex.
If you’re having marital problems, get a divorce, then wait until the kids are all out of the house and you’re no longer obsessed with your job, etc…then give the relationship another go.
10 – 1.5 for being overlong/needing some scenes cut here and there – 1 for a few failed/tired comedic attempts – .5 for some underdeveloped characters = 7.0
The Robot Who Likes Pretty Things 
I laughed a lot but mostly cause of the way Baldwin and Krasinski handle their scenes and humor.
See, I think this movie is a lot like Avatar in that you really need to see it in the theatre in 3D to really appreciate it…. kidding, I see what you mean with Steve Martin being underused . . . I thought her kitchen looked lovely… I don’t know why she needed a bigger one… I saw a review that referred to the movie as “interior design porn,” which seems appropriate… and what about Baldwin’s new wife? One moment she’s a caricature, the next moment, the movie seems to want us to care about her and the kid? And it never really felt resolved…. when the wellbeing of a kid is involved, it just sort of brought the comedy down a bit for me…
Hey No…,
I’m hosting the My Best Post blog-a-thon.
It goes from May 21st-23rd. Want to be a part of it?
It’s pretty easy. You’ve already written your entry.
Just send me a link to your best/favorite/underrated blog post! Thanks!
http://he-shot-cyrus.blogspot.com/2010/04/big-announcement-revealed.html
I really enjoyed this movie. The chemistry between Streep & Baldwin was amazing. John Krasinski was great too; his subtle performances are always a winner.
“OMG I thought he’d never leave.”
That cracked me up pretty good. I thought Alec Baldwin was firing on all cylinders.