It's Complicated

bde2b003382e
Originally uploaded by aboutmerylstreepvn2

Jane and Jake have been divorced for 10 years and Jane isn’t looking for love, what she’s looking for is to start the addition to her house after dreaming of it for years. However, things get complicated when Jane and Jake go to New York for their son Luke’s graduation – the two get hammered and end up sleeping together. This starts an affair where Jane is the other woman, while Jake cheats on Agnes, his wife and the woman he originally left Jane for. All while this is happening their daughter Lauren is planning her wedding to fiancée Harley and Jane’s architect Adam begins to pursue her.

It’s Complicated is a comedy that I went into expecting it to be funny, but I thought it would be the polite, adult, intellectual giggle kind of comedy. Nope. I (and most of the audience) laughed so hard at points in this film that dialogue was missed – I haven’t done that since Tropic Thunder. Nancy Meyers hit it out of the park with It’s Complicated and made a wonderful comedy, and probably one of my favorite films of the year by delivering an intelligent, funny script and combining it with good direction and the perfect cast.

One of the huge appeals for me in It’s Complicated was the three stars – Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin & Steve Martin. The comedic timing, chemistry and talent these three have on screen in the film is incredible and even though each are huge stars in their own right none of them steals scenes from one another. All three are a perfect pairing.

The character that I actually stole the film for me was Harley played by John Krasinski. Harley is Lauren’s fiancée and a perfect for their family unit. So perfect in fact when he discovers the affair between Jake and Jane he knows he needs to cover it up. Harley is one of the funniest characters in the film and Krasinski manages to be just as memorable as Streep, Baldwin & Martin which is not an easy task.

Perhaps the one thing that makes It’s Complicated truly great is that it’s not a chick flick, it’s just a well made, funny film that can be enjoyed by almost any audience. When I went to the theatre to see this film the audience crossed the spectrum or couples, individuals, young and old and the entire audience was laughing just as hard as I was.

Director & Writer: Nancy Meyers
Jane: Meryl Streep
Adam: Steve Martin
Jake: Alec Baldwin
Harley: John Krasinski
Agness: Lake Bell
Trisha: Rita Wilson

Harley: Are you smoking WEED in the guest bathroom?
Jake: Yes we are, and we'd appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone?
Harley: Oh no. Of course not. Just add it to the list.

Leatherheads

Leatherheads, 2008
Originally uploaded by Maulleigh

Since leaving ER George Clooney has spent an extraordinary amount of time working with Steven Soderbergh and Joel & Ethan Coen. These directors helped him not only ease from TV stardom to the filmic legend that he is now, but by working with these (and other) phenomenal filmmakers has turned George Clooney into a powerful director in his own right.

Clooney’s latest directorial turn is the throwback film Leatherheads which paints the picture of pre-NFL football where the men played for the love of the game and the majority of games ended in brawls between teams. As the trailer states: the game of professional football has come of age.

There are three primary stories the film tries to tell. The foremost is that of the love triangle between Clooney, Zellwegger, and Krasinski, and the rivalry that forms between the men based on football and their affection for Zellwegger. Also, there is Krasinski’s character who is the glorified college football star and former war hero whom all of America adores. This of course makes him the perfect target for Zellwegger’s ambitious journalist who is assigned the roll of dissecting his too perfect story. On top of all this is the complicated web of making the game of football into a professional (and legitimate) sport.

Leatherheads is a good movie, but it is not a great one. The problem is that this film tires to tackle too much and as such it suffers from pacing issues; it cannot decide exactly what to focus on and somehow manages to focus on nothing as much as it needs to.

However, this does not keep the film from being devoid of entertainment. The single most riveting thing about this movie (aside from the superb direction) is the witty banter and chemistry between Zellwegger and Clooney. Not since Carey Grant and Katherine Hepburn in The Philadelphia Story has dialogue been so sharp witted or enjoyable. The actors obviously enjoy the coupling and the dialogue flows like the perfect screwball comedies of the Hollywood golden age.

In the end Leatherheads deserved another trip to the writers room before landing on the big screen, but that doesn’t keep the tale from being one of the most enjoyable romantic, comedic romps in a long time.


Director: George Clooney
Writer: Duncan Brantley & Rick Reilly
Dodge: George Clooney
Lexie: Renee Zellwegger
Carter: John Krasinski