Okay to see once

Rating: 7/10 (1 March 2013)

I'm not usually much on ensemble-type casts, but prefer a strong male/female lead couple. However, this one does work, although I'm a little surprised to see such a high rating by our IMDb reviewers. Generally I liked the film, but I felt that there were actually too many "couples" stories being told -- 9 in all; that's really only an average of 15 minutes per story...and several of the stories deserved more.
The Billy Mack and Joe segment just didn't work for me, although there were some funny moments as an old rock star tries to remain relevant. I wondered if there would be a gay segment in the film...it surprised me that this was it. I must admit that I'm not particularly enthralled with Bill Nighy, although he did better in "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel".
The Juliet, Peter and Mark segment was entertaining. Keira Knightley and Chiwetel Ejiofor were very good as newlyweds, and the wedding ceremony was downright entertaining. And the way the triangle works out is different, and therefore quite interesting.
The Jamie and Aurélia segment is strong due to Colin Firth's performance, though the bit in the pond is rather absurd...why would you retrieve soaked papers that would be damaged beyond recognition? The whole infidelity segment with Alan Rickman just didn't really work, from my perspective. He's a fine actor, but this just seemed awkward. Emma Thompson was very good, as always. This could have been the basis for a whole movie, which might have made it more understandable.
Hugh Grant, as the new Prime Minister...well, although he seemed too young for the role, it worked well. Nice to see the U.S. President (Billy Bob Thornton) taken down a peg, although Thornton as President...egads! There's humor here, and I enjoyed it.
The subplot of Liam Neeson and his son just seemed to go nowhere.
I did find the segment with Laura Linney and Rodrigo Santoro interesting. It's a bittersweet story, and one that doesn't end the way you might be hoping.
The segment with Colin, Tony and the American girls...perhaps this should have been scrapped.
And the whole porn star story just seemed pointless.
Still, all in all, I enjoyed the movie...once.