finally saw knocked up last night.
i was looking forward to it.
i had heard it was the surprise, romantic comedy, blockbuster of the year, getting wild accolades from critics and public alike.
even had heard about the edgy, subliminal, pro-life message that might get me all riled up.
i like! very nice!
i was ready for both.
regarding the subliminal message first, there was never any conflict.
the word abortion was referenced once and even then, the word couldn’t even be uttered (it came up as “shamortion clinic”).
the point is, she was having this baby from the get go—it was a none issue.
alas, no underlying message about which i could get all up in arms.
but hey, message-shmessage—a blockbuster romantic comedy doesn’t need no stinkin’ point to it.
unfortunately, there was little romantic about it too.
after all, the most important ingredient for a great romantic comedy is that the interactions and dialogue of the romantic subjects lead you to believe that, regardless of the apparent impossible obstacles, there is a romance worth birthing.
that romance was never conceived—a fetus yes, a romance no, not that i could tell anyway.
in fact, the first time alison told ben she loved him, i shook my head in wonder.
based on what?
certainly nothing i've seen so far.
actually, it may have been the most implausible piece of dialogue in the whole movie, and for a romantic comedy, if you can’t believe the love connection, then what you have on your hands is not romantic, and that isn’t funny, which makes it hard to be a comedy to boot.
well actually, as for the comedy, there were some funny bits but they were almost always the results of the supporting, stale, stereotypical, male characters’ antics—all of the laughs dipping into standard, sophomoric stock.
having said all that, i’m acutely aware that i’m in the small minority on this one.
i don't know, maybe i don’t get it anymore.
i’m too aged.
my reasoning skills have turned to vinegar.
hmm ... even so, the movie was still dumb.
may the bloodletting posts begin.
2 comments:
I haven't seen it because I was pretty much expecting what you just described. Now that my fears are confirmed, I won't bother.
It all looked a little trite to me, but then, I've not been in much the mood for a rom-com lately because I find them all predictable and not remotely realistic.
Maybe I've gotten cynical.
cynical, vinegar, same thing. nice to have company when the bloodletting commences.
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