Definitely, Maybe
Written/directed by Adam Brooks
I subscribe to film critic A.O Scott's cynicism about the death of the romantic comedy. I have seen a lot of cloying crap a la The Notebook. One shlocky rom-com trend as of late is the tendency to follow the Pygmalion archetype. Girl meets boy (or vice versa). Girl changes some aspect of herself to become more attractive to said boy. Boy falls in love with girl. We see girl develop higher self-esteem through love process. This is the Bridget Jones-era of self-development. These are not stories about relationships, but about self-betterment or overcoming personal insecurities.
Definitely, Maybe IS about relationships. I will save you the plot description (imagine something akin to Princess Bride meets Sleepless in Seattle set in NYC), but basically, a political consultant tries to explain his impending divorce and past three relationships to his 11-year-old daughter. The story is mediated as a bedtime story: a mystery as to which of these women turned out to be the girl's mother (the adorable Abigal Breslin of Little Miss Sunshine). As the stories unravel, we see why the relationships worked/failed when they did. We get three-dimensional people with goals, loves, and back stories. Not just one character arch, but four! (Take notes Nicholas Sparks!) We pick sides, we change our minds, we invest in people.
Meanwhile, New York has a pivotal role as the stage and the playground for these romances. Different neighborhoods suggest moods (murray hill--stiff corporate america, soho-trendy yuppies, central park-staged romance). Ultimately Brooklyn Heights becomes the step back, the last shot from across the Williamsburg Bridge, looking at the city as a chaotic symbol of the last 16 years.
Why else did I find this film refreshing? Because of its sincerity. It self-monitored the sentimental crap and never felt condescending (even with the presence of a child as audience in the scene of discourse). I sensed my heart strings were being plucked (Rachel Weisz performing cabaret in the park...this crossed the line into vomitously cute territory), but as much as I resisted the tug (the study abroad diary plot device?), I went with it. Maybe because it is Valentine's season, or because I am sucker for Clintonian democracy.
Chick flicks go well with Cafe Lalo (made famous as the cafe in You've Got Mail). Ditch the caffeine for a raspberry parfait.
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