Hollywood and its relentless bias for quantity not quality has made cynics of us all. In the case of this lost gem, it is no coincidence that (as of the date this review is penned) the top rated IMDb critique basically says that the writer was expecting junk ... and yet was pleasantly surprised.
Sterling praise, that.
Folks we need to (sorry for the pun) look at the big picture here. The Romcom is a tried and true Hollywood tradition that goes back to the days of ... oh ... Claudette Colbert and Doris Day.
When it doesn't work, it is usually still entertaining; and when it does work, it is magical. This one is magical.
Forget the cynicism for a moment and you will see the all the components are there: the writing is so sharp it cuts (especially the last scene with the door speaker); the direction is gentle and unobtrusive, and all the actors (ALL!) are excellent and engaging.
Ryan Renolds, if you can look past the career error known as Green Lantern, is a natural romantic lead, engaging and always moving forward, taking the viewer along. Since this is a story about a man looking for Mrs. Right, the female players have to sexy enough to appeal to the male viewer yet still relatable and sympatico for the distaff members of the audience. Again, spot on.
Isla Fisher may possibly have given the performance of her career here because she is required to build a presence in a movie where she is offscreen most of the time. And she pulls it off. Which in turn makes the ending that much more fun.
Sterling praise, that.
Folks we need to (sorry for the pun) look at the big picture here. The Romcom is a tried and true Hollywood tradition that goes back to the days of ... oh ... Claudette Colbert and Doris Day.
When it doesn't work, it is usually still entertaining; and when it does work, it is magical. This one is magical.
Forget the cynicism for a moment and you will see the all the components are there: the writing is so sharp it cuts (especially the last scene with the door speaker); the direction is gentle and unobtrusive, and all the actors (ALL!) are excellent and engaging.
Ryan Renolds, if you can look past the career error known as Green Lantern, is a natural romantic lead, engaging and always moving forward, taking the viewer along. Since this is a story about a man looking for Mrs. Right, the female players have to sexy enough to appeal to the male viewer yet still relatable and sympatico for the distaff members of the audience. Again, spot on.
Isla Fisher may possibly have given the performance of her career here because she is required to build a presence in a movie where she is offscreen most of the time. And she pulls it off. Which in turn makes the ending that much more fun.