One wedding and one funeral

Rating: Null/10 (17 February 2011)

Yes, one only, the wedding of the protagonist Emma's (Natalie Portman) sister that marks the conclusion of the movie. The funeral is at the beginning, all in the same family, of her father. While the title is as banal as can be, it aptly describes the essence in this rom-com. And you have seen it often enough, most recently probably in "Love and other drugs", someone with a phobia for close relationships. In "Love and other drugs", however, there is a good reason: a disease that will mean tremendous sacrifice on the part of the loved one. Here, Emma's resistance is not even explained with any particularly painful previous experience, and is therefore not too convincing. But never mind. This is not a logical-deduction whodunit mystery but rather a Valentine escapade and, as such, perfectly adequate.
To begin with, it has probably one of the most important ingredients of a rom-com, two leads are good-looking and can act the part. Playing Adam, Ashton Kutcher comes with impressive credentials from "Valentine's day" which, although an ensemble type of flick, clearly had him and Jennifer Garner top-billed. For Portman, this is of course not "Black Swan". But with full professional respect for the movie, she puts in an honest and earnest effort. Chemistry? While evident throughout the movie, the last scene is particularly convincing testimony.
The plot line is simplicity itself: two people agreed on having sex as their only relationship ("sex friends", "fxxx buddies" are two terminologies employed in the movie) end up along the inevitable path of falling in love. All the rest of the movie, coming with a large supporting cast, is just bells and whistles. While everyone did a good job, I'll mention two in particular, and there's a reason for it. Following the popular formula, the movie brings the couple to the final stage of something going wrong. True to this formula, the "turn-around" point is triggered by someone close. For Adam, it's his father; for Emma, her sister.
Kevin Kline, looking splendid as ever at 64, plays the 58-year-old father with muscles to spare. This is a pivotal character – by sleeping Adam's ex-girlfriend, he prompts his rueful son into seeking a sexual relationship, ANY sexual relationship, while propels the rest of the story. He even did a number with his own piano accompaniment, immediately bringing back sounds and images from "De-lovely" (2004).
If you have seen "New York, I love you", it's unlikely that you will forget lovely Olivia Thirlby in one of the most entertaining segments of that star-studded collection of tales from New York. Here, she plays the sister whose wedding is the trigger point to Emma finally breaking free from her self-imposed inhibitions. She role is smaller than Kline's and one can't help hoping that she had more to do in this movie.
My concluding remark has to be a salute to the movie's salute to Peanuts. The mere reference brings so much joy – "Great Scott", the Great Pumpkin, and there's even a character named Lucy! Good grief!!