Oh yikes, it’s been a while again since I posted a review. I’ve been a very bad movie-goer lately, but I’m hoping to get back on track! And to get me back on track, I saw a “no thinker” movie, No Strings Attached. I was hesitant about this because it looked formulaic but after some positive reviews from friends, I decided to give it a try with TC.
Movie: No Strings Attached
Rating: R
Release date: January 21, 2011
Everyday Adventures’ grade: B+
Summary: Pretty boy Adam (Ashton Kutcher) and good girl Emma (Natalie Portman) meet and remeet over several years until on the final meeting, they decide to get in to a “sex friends” relationship. Healthy? Maybe. Fun? You bet! But they will only be sex buddies until one person falls for another. Inevitable? Maybe.
My thoughts: I really thought I would hate this movie, but I didn’t. Trust me, I was just as surprised as you may be. I think I thought that I would hate it because a) Ashton plays nothing but the same character, “aw shucks” baby-faced guy who is like a lost puppy in love and 2) because the last time I saw Natalie Portman, she was in several compromising positions in Black Swan. But, what I did like is that the movie’s contemporary and puts Ashton is the “girl” mindframe with relationships while Natalie is the one running from commitment.
And it works because of Ashton and Natalie. Natalie isn’t the type to be the swoony, “love me” kind of girl and Ashton isn’t the man whore kind of guy. He tried that in the direct-to-DVD movie Spread and it didn’t work. But their chemistry does and the banter between them does too.
There are a lot of funny parts of this movie that are crude without being gross-out humor. And a strong supporting cast (Ludacris, Jake Johnson, Greta Gerwig and Mindy Kaling) are great too. They add to the story without trying to take it over. And the twists that Adam and Emma encounter are a little expected but not hokey.
Kevin Kline and Cary Elwes make nice small role/cameo appearances but Elwes barely spoke so maybe in a director’s cut, we’ll see more. To be honest, he character was wasted on screen.
I’ll be curious to see how this compares to the upcoming Friends With Benefits movie with Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake, which has a similar premise. Apparently sex buddies are a new spring trend?
Verdict: See it or Netflix it. There are some funny parts here that younger people will get. The older crowd in our showing didn’t find parts as funny as TC and me.
