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PCR #463 (Vol. 10, No. 6) This edition is for the week of February 2--8, 2009.

This Week's PCR
Movie Review
"He's Just Not That Into You"

Movie review by:
Michael A. Smith

Movies are rated 0 to 4 stars

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MOVIE REVIEW
"He's Just Not That Into You"  by Mike Smith
LA FLORIDIANA
2008 Was A Year to Forget, But--December was a Month to Remember! Part 2  by William Moriaty
RETRORAMA
A Look Back in Wax  by ED Tucker
SPORTS TALK
Byron Leftwich Has A Ring, How ‘bout You? .... The New Greatest Game Ever Played? .... Super Commercials? .... Can’t We All Just Get A Bong? .... Texans Violate Agreement .... Other Notes .... ....  by Chris Munger
MATT'S RAIL
Bonggate .... Sponsor Loss .... Suspended .... Hang In There Dude  by Matt Drinnenberg
MIKE'S RANT
Good Job Honey! .... What's In A Name .... Roy .... Passing On .... .... .... .... .... My Favorite Films, Part 2...  by Mike Smith
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New Line Cinema     
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Scarlett Johansson and Justin Long
Directed by: Ken Kwapis
Rated: PG 13
Running Time: 2 hrs 9 mins


Last week began a two-week run of, for want of a better term, “chick flicks.” “New in Town” and this week’s film, “He’s Just Not That Into You,” are ideal fare for the upcoming Valentine Day holiday. A few laughs for the guys but more than enough “chick stuff” for the ladies that they won’t argue this summer when you suggest you go see the new “Transformers” film.

The story (take a deep breath): Gigi (Ginnifer Goodwin) has a drink with Connor (Kevin Connoly). When they say goodbye he says he’ll give her a call. But instead he calls old friend/sometime lover Anna (Johannsson) who just ran into Ben (Cooper) in a local store. They meet, cute, but Ben is married to Janine (Jennifer Connelly whose co-worker, Beth (Jennifer Anniston), has been dating Neil (Ben Affleck) for seven years. Exhale. It’s pretty complex, as you can tell. And I haven’t even worked Justin Long or Drew Barrymore into the plot yet. Ah yes, the plot. Since the beginning of time, little boys have been mean to little girls. However, when those little girls cry to their mothers they are told that the little boys push them down and call them names because they like them. Apparently this little factoid embeds itself into a girl's psyche and they begin to make excuses when they get older as to why men treat them badly. From American women, who console their friends by telling them “Maybe he lost your number” to the darkest parts of Africa, where the best friend opines “Maybe he got eaten by a lion,” it seems that women have devised an excuse for every indignity a man can cause.

Smartly written, but about 30 minutes too long, “He’s Just Not That Into You” features a sharp cast and some fine performances. Goodwin plays Gigi as a semi-stalker who is trying too hard to fall in love. Told she’ll get a call she constantly checks her voice mail, even monitoring it during exercise class. Hoping to “run into” Connor after he hasn’t called she meets club manager Alex (Justin Long) who fills her in on the ways of men and dating. Cooper does well as a man who felt forced into marriage and now feels he’s met “the one” a few years too late. Connelly as the wife in question comes off more pushy than sympathetic, especially with a subplot about her father dying of cancer and someone (hubby? Workmen?) smoking secretly in the house. As a man strongly opposed to marriage Affleck carries himself (and his convictions) well. Too bad he only has about 15 minutes of screen time. Anniston is quite strong as the oldest daughter forced, again, to watch another sister tie the knot. She also has some moving scenes with Kris Kristofferson, who plays her father. Barrymore, who also produced the film, has about as much screen time as Affleck but makes the most of her minimal time.

My main complaint with the film is the time it takes to wrap up the various sub-plots. Just when you think things are resolved the film has another plot twist to deal with. To put it bluntly, this film has more endings than the last “Lord of the Rings” film. That film was over three hours long. This one just seems like it.

On a scale of zero to four stars I give “He’s Just Not That Into You”  


This week's movie review of "He's Just Not That Into You" is ©2009 by Michael A. Smith.  All graphics this page are creations of Nolan B. Canova, ©2009, all rights reserved. All contents of "Nolan's Pop Culture Review" are ©2009 by Nolan B. Canova.