He's Just Not That Into You

Going into He’s Just Not That Into You, I knew I was not the film’s target demographic. The girls two rows behind me who “aww’d” every time something sweet happened were the film’s target demographic, and judging from their reactions throughout, I’d say the movie really hit its mark. Luckily for me, I really enjoyed it as well, so everyone wins.

HJNTIY (I won’t be typing the title again, even though that acronym looks horrendous) is being advertised as a very fluffy and sweet romantic comedy. Now, I’m an unabashed fan of Love Actually and a few other rom coms, but it certainly isn’t my genre of choice. That is why I was pleasantly to find that 95% of this movie is not romantic comedy. Before you ask, I’m not saying that its something as deep as There Will Be Blood, and yes, it does have a lot of the common romantic comedy tropes, but it tells the story in a fresh and original way. Even when the film comes across the common elements, it makes them its own. The film also separates itself with a different way of telling the story. Not only does the film spread the narrative over 8-10 characters, it also poses questions and then has characters (not the aforementioned 8-10) answer them in a documentary format. I thought this was going to be stupid, but accounted for one of the film’s funniest sequences.

Where the film really works is the actors and how real their characters feel. The dialogue is good and helps the actors a lot, but it is the facial expressions that add depth (and humor). A few actors really deserve to be mentioned, especially Justin Long and Ginnifer Goodwin. Goodwin does the obsessive, neurotic, awkward woman so perfectly that there were times I had to look away. Long plays the stereotypical guy who calls it like he sees it and knows all the rules to dating, but does it in such a way that it feels natural and the stereotype is not an issue. Jennifer Connelly and Bradley Cooper are also both very good as the struggling married couple. The only actor who was truly terrible was Scarlett Johanson. She seemed outmatched in every scene she was in, and she was in a scene with Drew Barrymore.

I did wish that the film’s commentary on the relationship world had stayed more realistic and resisted the need to tie up every story with a neat, little bow. Like I previously mentioned though, I’m not the target demographic, so I doubt the filmmakers care about my criticisms. The moral of the story is that this film knows what it wants to be, and delivers that to its audience perfectly. I, along with my theater, laughed almost the entire film. As things get more dramatic, the film handles the shift well and juxtaposes this drama against the humor. I won’t comment on the message of the film, because that would involve spoilers, which I don’t do, and because it’s not overly important. This is a film that should just be enjoyed, and if you get a message from it, then great. If not, no loss.

Things got a little to sappy for me toward the end, but that doesn’t change the fact that I enjoyed the film a lot and recommend it anyone who wants to see a good movie.