Finally, a movie that seems somewhat true to a normal person's flawed, layered, complicated and unclear experience of romance. When it comes to the love stuff, it's not a case of getting hit by a bus and waking up to realise that someone is without a doubt the one for you, or spilling your coffee on someone by accident in a train station, bumping heads and then proposing, or any other which ridiculous way that Disney would have had you believe; it's way more head-bangingly complex than that. Though a devout fan of romantic comedies (sometimes I enjoy how unfathomable they are), when it comes to my own aortic pump, I'm a bit of a cynic. Surely we can't adopt the same behaviour as penguins and be happy with one person forever? Like forever and ever and ever? *insert Outkast's Ms Jackson here* Well perhaps some of us can, but while you may be content with your fillet steak and bearnaise sauce, you sure don't stop looking at the menu. Then there's the whole matter of friends and feelings, a conversation that inevitably brings me back to the definitive relationship movie, When Harry Met Sally: Can a single man and a single woman really be just friends without the sex getting in the way? Well I hail from the Harry school of thought. If you haven't watched it, do, then come back to me.
Anyhoo, enough with the heavy. Let's talk about Drinking Buddies. The gorgeous Olivia Wilde stars as our leading lady, who's got a best friend in the form of New Girl's Jake Johnson. They work together at a brewery and they get along like peas and carrots. To others their banter seems like flirting but to them, they're beyond that; they're just comofortable. Until there's drink involved, at which point the line between friendship and more tends to blur. Been there before? We all have.
Luke's got a longterm bird in Anna Kendrick's character, Jill, who wants him to put a ring on her finger. Meanwhile Kate's having fun with Chris, played by Ron Livingston, aka Burger. He's totally into her but something tells him she doesn't quite reciprocate. But she does have genuine feelings for him, as does Luke for Jill; he loves her. They try to remain friends and socialise as a foursome.
And henceforth, a true-to-life story of friendship, relationships and the effects of alcohol on one's inhibitions ensues. By the movie's close, I'm hoping that for these characters (whom I like to pretend are real), it'll be a clear case of 'when you know you know'.
Either way, I'm excited for this one.
