Man Love at its finest
Monday, March 30, 2009
I love Paul Rudd in the most heterosexual way possible. So, naturally I feel obligated to divulge my clear bias on reviewing a film starring my man crush. I imagine if we were ever to meet, Mr. Rudd and I would fast become best of friends. I can see us having a good laugh over a gelato about the many complications of life, yelling at bicyclists on the riverfront, and picking up on women in IKEA, because, after all, that’s just what best friends do. But until that fateful day when we both reach for the same pair of casual wear slacks at the mall I’ll just have to live out my fantasy vicariously on screen through his co-stars.
“I Love You, Man” is about a guy who’s almost got it all. Everything seems to be falling into place for Peter Klaven, played by Paul Rudd (Of “Every Good Comedy Made In the Last 5 Years” fame), he’s got the girl, almost landed the job, but something is missing, a BFF. Enter Sydney Fife, played by Jason Segel (Of “How I Met Your Mother” and “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” fame), the classic casual life drifter best bud that your girlfriend or wife never liked archetype. At the behest of his fiancée, Klaven begins the courtship of Sydney to become his best man at his upcoming wedding, and hilarity ensues.
Spotlighting the often skimmed, rarely explored topic of male bonding “I Love You, Man” manages to touch on the natural progression of a budding friendship between two guys with minimal homoerotic reference. Dialogue comes natural, and the characters feel so real and likeable, the film manages to skip by on its charm alone, upgrading every line from chortle to guffaw with effortless dismissal. Segel and Rudd hit it off and manage to create the perfect dynamic so necessary for buddy comedies. As to be expected in a movie starring any of the actors born to the new age of comedy tycoons led from the Apatow stable of talent, the film is brimming with improvisational acting, which lends to some of its brightest moments; like Rudd trying to air guitar along to a Rush song for his fiancée, only adding to its already irresistible charm.
Granted, the film is transparent at times in its formulaic approach to telling a story. The plot could be baited and switched with any of the latest comedic offerings like “40 Year Old Virgin” or “Role Models,” but where “I Love You, Man” differs is its intentions and realistic depiction of the complicated beast that is the male friendship. In the end, it emerges as a genuine and likeable movie. I give it four Lou Ferrigno’s out of five.
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