I expected the comedy to be played a lot bigger, but once I got past my expectations (as I always must) I was able to really enjoy the story. It's hilarious and has a ton of heart. Something that really struck me is that I cared about all the characters and all of the story lines. The combination of great script and great cast meant that every joke was real. There were no moments that were in there just because there weren't enough jokes in the scene (these are the kinds of jokes that jar me from the story). Even the thirteen year old mooning after his babysitter... I laughed so hard, but I cared so much.
I loved the break into act three, where Steve Carell's character makes this big romantic gesture. This is a staple in romantic comedies, where the main character gets the girl, but in Crazy Stupid Love, it is the point where all three of the storylines crash together and seem to go up in flames. It was hilarious and then perfectly transitioned to the point where the main character loses everything and we don't know if the character can get it together for the end of the movie. It is a perfect example of how to keep genre expectations fresh.
Also, it doesn't hurt that Ryan Gossling is one of my favorite actors. Besides being the most beautiful man I will most likely never see in person, I think he had the best performance of all the (amazing) actors in this film. I was beyond impressed. He made me laugh at all the right times and his transformation from smooth player to nice guy in love was completely believable. The entire movie would not have worked if Gossling hadn't been able to make me believe he had changed.
This is definitely a film I would love to see again. Probably with a stop watch next time.
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I just this over holiday break and really liked it. I did not see the twist coming of how all the characters were connected! It seems silly looking back but I was genuinely surprised. As good as Gosling was in this (and he was) I give most of the credit to Steve Carell who can mesh the storylines together and perfectly play a down-and-out dad who still loves his wife.
ReplyDeleteThe part where he rolled out of the car was gold.
This movie was number 102 in my netflix queue, but after reading your review I went ahead and moved it up to number 2!
ReplyDeleteThere was one scene in the trailer that made Ryan look like a tool which is why I never really made much effort to see it. But I trust you.
Don't tell anybody, but I rented this movie from Redbox and then watched it at work yesterday! Loved Loved LOVED it!!! It was so funny and surprising at every turn. I remember you saying that in act 3 all the story lines crash into each other, but when it happened I was so caught off guard! I was like "Whoa What!!!" and the whole time he was trying to make the romantic gesture and you saw the other dad and daughter on their way to his house I was like "NOOOOOO STOOOOOOP DON'T RUIN THIS!!!!!!!!! AGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!"
ReplyDeleteI don't think anyone could have pulled off that role other then Ryan Gossling.