This film is entirely
unnecessary for a number of reasons; most significant being the mere fact that
it is merely a collection of clichés and conversations taken from much better
films. With nothing original to add to the romantic comedy genre, at the very
least first-time filmmaker Tom Gormican could have given the film a decently
written female character. Even the male characters are only given about as much
personality as is designated to various members of the carefully constructed
boy bands. It is clear that this is a movie made catered to the tastes of a
specific female Zac Efron fan club, where all guys who are attractive may act
poorly but it is only because they are falling in love for the first time. This
plays right into the female fantasy of fixing and domesticating the bad-boy
personality type, and I’m sure belief in this movie’s happy ending will lead
thousands of additional naïve girls into believing their random hook-ups will
eventually fall in love with them.
There is more
attempt in the film’s trailer to set up a plot than in the actual film, though
there is a quick scene in which three single friends make a pact to stay out of
relationships for as long as possible. This is supposed to help introduce
conflict in the otherwise pointless narrative, because all three friends
inevitably end up in a relationship that they hide from their friends at their
own detriment. Jason (Efron) is the stereotypical player, sleeping with a
variety of women at any given time, even after he meets Ellie (Imogen Poots),
the girl he is supposedly in love with. Daniel (Miles Teller) begins sleeping
with his female friend, who was nothing more than a friend until… yeah, even
describing this horrendous movie-romance cliché is making me sick. Mikey
(Michael B. Jordon) has the most unique situation, with a wife that left him
for the lawyer she is using to divorce him. Mikey’s relationship is with this
same wife, who is okay sleeping with him as long as it isn’t in marriage.
The humor is
contrived and unbelievable, the relationships are one-dimensional and
inconsequential, and the romance is non-existent thanks to an ill-fated attempt
to make a romantic comedy directed towards a male audience which would also
appease young female Efron fans. Studio execs need to realize those are two
different demographics. The best thing that can be said about this film is that
it is better than Cavemen. It is a short and inoffensive watch, so long as you
have your brain turned off or access to a large amount of drugs or alcohol. The
worst part was the random voice-over narration that suddenly decides to pop
into the story to wrap things up nicely.
The Blu-ray
release includes an exclusive behind-the-scenes featurette, as well as an
extended gag reel. Also included in the extras are additional featurettes,
including one about each of the characters. It is all basically fluff, directed
at audience members watching this film because of the cast members in it.
Entertainment Value:
5/10
Quality of Filmmaking:
3.5/10
Historical
Significance: 2/10
Special Features: 4/10
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