I’ll start by saying I saw approximately half of “Love Happens” (my explanation on twitter), so I’m deferring the overall rating to my wife… but even she wasn’t overly excited after seeing this one.

You should know that “Love Happens” is not a typical romantic comedy, sort of like Jennifer Aniston’s other recent movie “Marley & Me” wasn’t really completely a comedy… mostly because some of the material is more dramatic than comedic.

 From what I saw (my explanation on twitter), “Love Happens” was different, but also slow and at the same time, typical and formulaic… almost cliche.

Smart boy (Aaron Eckhart) meets clever girl (Aniston)… sure its different because he’s something we don’t see much in rom-coms (a motivational speaker) and she’s a florist… but the way they meet and things start is all mostly storylines we’ve seen before in the multitude of  rom-coms churned out over the last three decades.

Aniston’s character is similiar to many of the characters we’ve seen her play before, especially similiar to “Rachel” from “Friends”.   Eckhart is in a different role, but also similiar to the way he has played conflicted characters before.  The two don’t have the kind of chemistry we’ve come to expect in romantic comedies… I’m not going to say they were just going through the motions, but there was little connection on screen, and less with the audience.

In the end, the movie focuses more on how Eckhart’s character is dealing with his problems than an actual romance between the two.  If you’re expecting a “Sleepless in Seattle” sweet budding love story, you’ll be disappointed – just because its set in Seattle (and all the cliche typical shots of Seattle), its not on the same level as “Sleepless in Seattle”.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

Not disappointed or totally impressed… my wife gives it 7.0 out of 10 … and she generally loves romantic comedies, so take this as not a ringing endorsement for “Love Happens”… you would probably feel better after renting it.

 “Love Happens”

(2009) (rated: PG-13 for some language including sexual references)
(1 hr, 49 min)

Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Jennifer Aniston, Dan Fogler, John Carroll Lynch, Martin Sheen, Judy Greer, Frances Conroy

Director/Writer:  Brandon Camp

Genre: Drama/Romance

The Plot: About a widower whose book about coping with loss turns him into a best-selling self-help guru. On a business trip to Seattle, he falls for a woman who attends one of his seminars, only to learn that he hasn’t yet truly confronted his wife’s passing.

So what did you think?  Please post a comment!

 
“Love Happens” poster courtesy Universal Pictures

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