Its Complicated - film review

It's Complicated

Film review

February 2010

I took Tilly to the cinema last night, the Showcase in Erdington which has recently regained its status as the "Ahab cinema of choice".

The visit was unusual because the place was heaving - we had to queue in the wind and rain for ten minutes just to get inside the door, which was rather like the cinema experiences I remember as a teenager. I'm not sure if it was because it was half term, or because it was "Orange Wednesday" or because the ticket buying experience at the nearby Showcase Vue Cinema is so deplorable - maybe its a bit of all three.

Finding a film we will both enjoy is always a challenge, with Tilly leaning towards cartoons and teenage romances - which are the two genres I will try and avoid at all costs! In the end we settled on "It's Complicated", billed as a romantic comedy starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin.

The plotline is the classic love lost and love regained, but done with an interesting twist. Instead of teen love or angst ridden thirty someting love (Bridget Jones) this took a very mature love, love in the 50's and all the scope for happiness and heartache that can entail.

Without blowing the plot, Meryl Streep was married to Alec Baldwin for 20 years before he ran off with a younger woman, but all was not happiness. Meanwhile, Streep takes five years to start getting over him and then another five to establish herself as a successful businesswoman and complete the task of raising their three children.

Come the graduation ceremony of one of the kids, Mum and Dad meet up and wonder, does the flame still flicker? Indeed it did, and before you knew it she has assumed the role of mistress to her ex husband, who is now married to the woman who was the mistress before their divorce. They had warned that it's complicated!

The twists and turns of this rekindled romance leave acres of scope for confusion, misunderstanding and farce, which is where Steve Martin comes in playing a remarkably straight role as the would be suitor.

That's as much of the plot as I am prepared to reveal. The key thing about this movie is the reaction it had on the audience. Many comedies play fo a silent audience but not "It's Complicated". Within minutes the film has us in stitches, falling about at the excruciating embarrassment of many scenes. I laughed so much I actually cried, and that dosn't happen to Capt Ahab!

If you like Meryl Streep, and you fancy a good laugh, go an see this film. Of you miss it on the big screen, dont worry. It is carried by the plotline and not the image, so it's a perfect candidate for a successful switch to the small screen format.

Ahab rating: 8/10