Film review: Crazy, Stupid, Love

THOUGH the title is apt enough, the word stupid in Crazy, Stupid, Love gives off the wrong signal in the current comedic climate.

Crazy, Stupid, Love

THOUGH the title is apt enough, the word stupid in Crazy, Stupid, Love gives off the wrong signal in the current comedic climate.

The prevailing trend in large-screen laughs right now is to be stupid at all costs. The best hope for any wit and inspiration is only if these elements are slipped into the mix when no one's looking.

In a world goofily guffawing at the likes of Horrible Bosses, The Change-Up, Johnny English Reborn and Bad Teacher, an un-stupid movie such as Crazy, Stupid, Love is conspicuously going against the flow.

This is not to say that Crazy, Stupid, Love will knock out any viewers by virtue of breathtaking originality or audaciously risky humour.

No, this is a solid, almost apologetically sincere comedy - perhaps a little too play-safe for some adventurous tastes, but played to perfection (with one or two exceptions) by a top-flight cast.

The roundabout plotting of Crazy, Stupid, Love allows the film to poke fun at and speak truths about modern relationships.

That is a tougher assignment than many may assume.

So it is a blessing that the characters are so clearly established from the get-go. Steve Carell plays Cal, a square, middle-aged Mr Average who has just been dumped by Emily (Julianne Moore), his wife of more than 20 years.

Cal takes Emily's request for a divorce so badly he throws himself out of the car in which they are both travelling when the news first breaks.

In the months that follow, a miserable Cal drowns his sorrows at a local bar that serves as the happiest of hunting grounds for Jacob (Ryan Gosling). This thirtysomething Mr Smooth has women at his beck and call, and wisdom that should and will repair the broken heart of Cal.

Before long, Cal becomes a proficient player of the dating game. Meanwhile Jacob, perhaps predictably, begins to question if having all the answers is holding him back from achieving true fulfilment.

The more you burrow into its many subplots, the more interesting and creatively connected the film becomes.

It takes an hour to work out what the heck the always-incredible Emma Stone is doing in the picture, but the wait is definitely worth it. I won't say any more than put on record my wish that she and Gosling are paired up at the centre of a production sometime soon.

Julianne Moore's role is a slight disappointment, either as a result of harsh editing or wonky scripting. Whatever happened, we never really get a handle on why she has cheated on her husband with a gormless co-worker (Kevin Bacon, floundering in equally underwritten conditions).

Crazy, Stupid, Love (M)
Directors: Glenn Ficarra, John Requa
Starring: Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling (left), Julianne Moore, Emma Stone, Marisa Tomei
Saner and smarter than the name implies
Rating: 3 Stars.