CRAZY, STUPID, LOVE

This is a Crazy Silly Film in which a couple of
different generations try to work out if they really should take no for an
answer when they believe that the reluctant person they
are pursuing really is their soul mate. 

It starts with a bang as Cal simply asks his wife Emily
what she wants for dessert, and she asks for ‘a divorce’.  It’s totally out of the blue and is simply
because she sees that Cal has grown complacent and lazy about their marriage after 25 years. He
is stunned, as are their two kids, especially 13 year old Robbie who is having
his own rejection issues and has a crush on the 17 year old baby sitter Jessica
(who, it turns out has a secret crush on Cal).

Cal moves out of their home and starts to hang out in
an upscale cocktail Bar where, in his shabby clothes and acting so morose, he stands out like a sore thumb.  He notices Jacob a suave lady-killer who
seems to be able to make out with every beautiful woman in the bar. Jacob in
turn spots Cal and after striking up a conversation with him, feels sorry for his plight and offers to turn his life
around.  He lectures him on pickup techniques
and does a major makeover job that turns Cal into a smartly turned out single dude
and Jacob’s committed disciple. And Cal makes the cut and starts to be success
in picking up some hot ladies and even having sex!

Emily meanwhile, who had confessed to a one–off
quickie with a colleague at work, is kind of having second thoughts about
actually pursuing a divorce when she catches sight of the new-improved Cal. Until
that is they are at a Parent Teaching Meeting at school together and they both
discover that Robbie’s teacher was one of Cal’s recent sexual conquests.

After this it’s young Robbie who is determined to
pursue Jessica despite all her rejections because he is convinces that she is
his soulmate, who encourages his father to re-woo his mother on the same
basis.  Cal in turn passes on the same advice to the usually cynical confirmed bachelor
Jacob who has actually fallen in love for the very first time and is scared
stiff of not being able to make a committed relationship work

When they all get together they all have a lot more to
be scared about, as writer Dan Fogelman’s script neatly weaves all these different
strands together so that they overlap wonderfully and make a delightful funny,
and dare I say it, cute,  movie.

Two things really make this movie stand out from other
romantic comedies.  Firstly nobody wishes
anybody any harm : they are actually all good-hearted people. which makes for somewhat of a refreshing change.  And they all actually
think marriage is a good thing. 
Wow!  And secondly there has been
some inspired casting choices made here : Cal is played by Steve Carrell who
switches so well from misunderstood slob to hot catch; lovely Julianne Moore doesn’t
have much to do as Emily, but Marisa Tomei shines as the reformed alcoholic school
teacher who wanted more than a quickie; Jacob’s girl friend  Hannah is played by the sexy funny Emma
Stone, and Jacob is Ryan Gosling the most perfect lounge lizard ever, and who is undoubtably
the star of this piece.

Mr Gosling quite rightly has picked up one of his two Golden
Globe Nominations this year for his performance here, and the fact that his
other one is for his role in ‘The Ides Of March’ demonstrates how his enormous talent
makes him excel in such different film genres. 
And if that is not enough, he looks like 
…….well, I hate to belittle his skills, but I simply couldn’t stop
myself agreeing out loud when Hannah spies Jacob’s naked torso for the first
time and simply blurts out ‘ Oh My God. 
You look just like you have been photo-shopped’!  Exactly.

★★★★★★★★