LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS

Jamie is a very self-confidant man who seemingly just does two things well.  He is a consummate salesman and he sleeps with a lot of very attractive women, which also helps him clinch most of his sales. However this is not enough for his family of over-achievers and they exert pressure on him to step up his act somewhat and although he will never be a medical whiz kid like them … or even an IT millionaire like his geek brother … he does land a rather a plum job as a medical rep.  The year is 1998 and Pfizer his employer have just introduced Viagra, which has a similar effect on Jamie’s career as it does on the men who are happy to pop the new blue magic drug in their mouth.

On one of his many attempts to persuade a reluctant Doctor to prescribe other Pfizer drugs he gets to meets Maggie a very attractive artist who seems as carefree as he is, and he soon falls for her.  This free-wheeling soul does however have a serious side as she is dealing with the early stages of Parkinson’s disease which adds a level of both gravity and melancholy to the story as she … and Jamie … deal with this twist which has the possibility of de-railing their relationship which has soon blossomed into ‘the real thing’.

This is a rather a grown up comedy that refreshingly avoids all the usual schoolboy smut that usually comes with just the mere mention of this drug.  It is in fact a sweet easy romance (with a touch of melodrama) and its made particularly very watchable by the delightful performances of Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway as Jamie and Maggie.  They have such a great screen chemistry that makes the whole charming story so much more believable …. and the fact that both of them are extremely good -looking kind of helps too.

P.S. And playing the small role of Jamie’s mother is the wonderful Jill Clayburgh who sadly passed away recently.