Excellent film despite the protagonists

Rating: Null/10 (21 December 2005)

This is a difficult film to comment on because, if seen in terms of a storyline with a main character (Andy) and a love interest for the main character (Trish), it's completely demoralizing and almost disturbing.
Andy goes 40 years before finding someone, and everyone around him claims to want to help him do so. Yet, when he falls for a loser with no future, nearly nothing to offer him or any other man, and a mediocre grasp of life (severe emotional and family problems that she tries to off-load onto him etc.) all his good-meaning friends go along with it, even encouraging him! Consider Cal, a master of male issues and pro-male activist: even though he admits the protagonist's love interest, Trish, is "f#$*ing crazy" to his boss, Paula, who agrees, neither he nor she warn poor Andy; in fact, Cal ultimately ends up helping Trish's "cause" (she calls it "love" but ultimately the goal is to suck Andy into her life so he can deal with the mess she's made of it).
However, if the viewer tries her hardest to ignore the two main characters and looks at the film scene-by-scene instead, focusing on the supporting characters, this is an exceptional film! Cal, the ganjaholic lounge warrior; David, the hopelessly romantic prince that holds and talks to a camcorder a la Hamlet before shoving it down his trousers whilst it's filming and projecting onto a bank of monitors; Jay, the free spirit victimized by an overbearing woman who wants to "change" him by getting pregnant and telling him his clubbing days are over as a result; Paula, the calm, collected, outspoken woman who wants to have a holiday at home so she can remain stoned for a week and watch "Gandhi" on video, and Mooj, the wise, grounded elder from exotic lands (Brooklyn, NY).
Considering the film as a series of monologues or dialogues between these characters, one is inevitably led to the conclusion that his film is truly fine cinema. Mooj's advice to Andy, although inaccurate (for Andy, it *should* be exactly about what Mooj says it's not about...), is heart-warming and will bring a tear to the sensitive viewer's eye. David and Cal's discussion on their feelings while playing a video game is also very well done. Paula and Cal's chat, either the one included in the film or the one in the unrated DVD extras, provides a tremendous amount of insight into the psyches of both characters.
7 out of 10 points for this one. -1 for Trish, a loser that borders on being the villain in the film. -1 for Andy, who changes in order to be with her (this is a very poor example to set for the children that will watch this film). -1 for excluding a number of critical scenes from the release (these are in the unrated DVD extras; for example, the Paula:Cal talk about Cal dropping 4 TVs and being sexually attracted to Barbara Walters (RIP in advance), then asking Paula to steal some hydroponic equipment for him from her new job so he can grow some skunk in his apartment). Another example of selling out one's art for the sake of getting a rating or attracting a specific audience sector -- bah!
This is a very entertaining and funny film and I'd recommend it regardless.