HE’S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU 2.5***

I
held off on seeing this movie until it came out on TV . Perhaps I was turned off by the “cutesy” title and that it appeared to be for a different generation.. one that is “light years” beyond mine which is the “baby boomers’”..the “Beach Bop”/Shag generation when you actually called a girl on a hard phone line for a date and just the 2 of you went out together and you had her home or back to the dorm by midnight…I know that sounds so ancient for some of you, but that is my original perspective on dating and it sometimes gets in the way of my trying to understand the new generations.

In any event, despite my initial reluctance, it was inevitable that I would see this film…it has the lovely Scarlett Johansson and I have admitted for some time that I’ve been smitten by her..a gorgeous young lady who is also quite a good actress. In fact, while my wife, Sara, and I were watching this movie, I confessed to her that if Scarlett showed up asking for me ( now that is a real far-fetched fantasy…but one can dream), that as much as I loved her, she’d have to forgive me if I disappeared with SJ for a few days. Sara’s response was…well we won’t get into that.

The movie tells the stories of a group of interconnected, Baltimore-based twenty- and thirty-somethings as they navigate their various relationships from the jumping-off end of the dating pool ( Scarlett Johanssen; Ginnifer Goodwin from TV’s “Big Love”; and Drew Barrymore) through the deep, murky waters of living together, not married( Jennifer Aniston/Ben Affleck))and living together, married (Jennifer Connelly/Bradley) , trying to read the signs of the opposite sex. Will those in love stay in love ?? Will those searching for someone figure out who is and who isn't into them? Are men all that different from women?
I enjoyed the movie for the most part…it’s a “chick flick” but fairly well done with a fine cast that does as much as it can given the limitations of the script. I was somewhat put off by the first part of the movie . I thought it insulted the intelligence and savvy of young ladies in general and especially the sharp, good looking young ladies in this movie. Now I admit I may be out of touch with the newer generations’ dating rituals . But, anyway, as the movie progressed I began to find it more interesting, the characters more likable and the dating “playing field” leveled out.

Bottom-line, if you enjoy a bit of fluff in a “chicky” sort of way, you’ll get “into” this one just fine. After all, not all movies have to have a heavy“ message” … some are good just because they are light and breezy.




Clark