Definitely, Mabye is Maybe the Best Yet

By Broadside Correspondent Ross Bonaime

It takes a lot to make a genuinely good romantic comedy. It is the task of pleasing both men and women, while also being sweet and hilarious. That is a fine art that few films can accomplish perfectly. The genre has been failing for a while, and good romantic comedies are few and far between. However, Definitely, Maybe is a breath of fresh air to the romantic comedy genre and forms what is a self-proclaimed “love story mystery.”

Ryan Reynolds, (Smokin’ Aces, Just Friends) plays Will Hayes, an ad executive, who after his daughter Maya, played by Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine, Signs), learns about sex education one day at school, asks her father about her mother and the story of how she came about. This leads Hayes to tell his High Fidelity-esque narration, which takes him back to the ‘90s to recall his tale of lost loves and broken hearts, and through this, the story of his ex-wife and Maya’s mom.

He tells Maya of Emily, his college sweetheart, who is performed by Elizabeth Banks (The 40-Year Old Virgin, Invincible), her former friend Summer played by Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardner, The Mummy) and her friend and co-worker April played by Isla Fisher (Wedding Crashers, The Lookout). Through the telling of the story, Maya must look through the clues and try to figure out who in the story is her mother and how she can make her father happy again.

The telling of Hayes’ story takes us into the past, present and future, showing the audience the beginning and the middle, yet hiding the end. While this may seem like a simple idea, it works brilliantly and requires the audience to piece things together for themselves, coming up with their own conclusions. This story device helps elevate the film from just being another standard “chick flick.”

Reynolds once again proves that he is a likable and entertaining lead actor and holds his own against the three leading ladies. He is able to pull off Will without being his usual wacky self and plays his role as moderately reserved. The three love interests all have their own strengths and the movie does not make any one woman more likable or interesting than the others, leaving the audience to root for all three. Banks is perfect as Will’s first love, and she also plays it more reserved than most of her previous comedy roles. Weisz plays a complex and deep writer, who is very much the most unique of the three main ladies. Fisher plays her best role yet and is very likable and sweet as Will’s best friend. After her breakthrough role in Wedding Crashers, it is nice to let the audience see that she does not have to play that type of crazy character and that she can actually act. Breslin is the perfect daughter to Reynolds’ character and the chemistry and love between the two is fantastic and easily displayed on screen.

Writer and director Adam Brooks (Wimbledon, Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason) makes his best film yet and seems to have learned from his past mistakes in much worse films. He directs with warmth that is not overly sugar coated, but leaves the audience feeling good inside.

One problem that plagues many romantic comedies is a wooden script that has dialogue that has been recycled from film to film, yet, Definitely, Maybe sounds incredibly original and unique compared to previous films.

The setting is decisively nineties and the film is filled with ‘90s nostalgia strategically placed throughout. The obvious references to Clinton, Nirvana and huge cell phones have been made in previous films, yet the jokes do not feel played out or overused in this film.

The idea of a “love story mystery” is a refreshing and nice change from the usual look at romantic films. The film plants subtle clues to who is Maya’s mother and lets the audience try to sift through the clues with Maya.
While the film may seem predictable at times, it does not suffer for it and throws just as many surprises at the audience. Definitely, Maybe is not overly sappy, yet it is genuinely sweet.

The acting is well-done and filled with heart and almost every character is instantly likable. It does not force its heart down the audiences’ throats, much like the way recent films, 27 Dresses and Over Her Dead Body have. Definitely, Maybe is one of the few romantic comedies that should please everyone and is one of the best in its genre to come out in years.

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