A Lot Like Love
Review by Jason Gaston
A Lot Like Love is a lot like a big ball of dung
being rolled uphill by some beetle. You’re not sure why anyone would
put that much effort into the whole affair and the fact that you can’t
stop watching the ball of poo just amazes you after a while.
A Lot Like Love stars Ashton Kutcher and Amanda Peet as a guy
and a girl who take seven years to figure out that they are perfect
for each other. Personally, I could buy that the movie takes place
over a period for seven years because that’s how long it felt like to
watch it.
Maybe I’m being
a little cynical as far as this movie is concerned. It’s a romantic
comedy and I hate romantic comedies, especially after seeing a movie
like Fever Pitch that gives me hope for the entire wretched
genre. I could have done without seeing this movie despite the fact
that I barely remember anything in it. Personally, I liked it the
first time I saw it when it was called When Harry Met Sally.
No wait… actually, I didn’t.
Through the years, hairstyles, and period music, we follow these two
irritating characters who go from a little cute to people you just
want to beat with a baseball bat with a nail sticking out of it.
Ashton Kutcher pretty much plays the largely empty-headed character
that you would think he would want to get away from playing if he ever
wanted to be taken seriously in his career. Then again, who else but a
love-struck fifteen year old girl and occasional boy would take him
seriously at all?
Amanda Peet does a decent job, but her character was too grating to
enjoy. Chalk that up to the crappy writing trying to make someone hip
but turning them into someone to be completely hated. She’s a real
Poochy*, that’s for sure.
I suppose A Lot Like Love could have been worse… the theater
could have caught fire and I might have been horribly scarred for
life. At least that didn’t happen.
On the other hand, if the script didn’t take that tried and true
cliché happy ever after ending route that we all know was coming… and
perhaps cast some more capable actors in a few key roles, it could
have been much much better as well.
This is a terrible movie. It's boring, it's contrived, the acting is
bad and the romance is tepid to say the least.
It has a few redeeming moments that save it from the sewer, but as far
as a movie goes, it’s the Diet Coke of entertainment. Not filling and
watered down.
* Refer to The Simpsons.