The Back-Up Plan

So along comes yet another generic romantic comedy featuring Jennifer Lopez (honestly the only movie I've ever really enjoyed that she was in was probably Monster-in-Law, and that is solely due to the comic talents of Jane Fonda.) I saw the previews..and I knew exactly what to expect. I read the reviews...I knew it was going to be terrible. But still...still I wanted to see it. One reviewer wrote: "Please, ladies, stay away or movies like this will never stop" Haha. And I knew it was true. But, I still went anyway and saw it this weekend...and I was unsurprised to find how awful it truly was. Still, as weird as it is, I like going to movies...all movies. I like the experience and I like being in the know...I like being able to form opinions.

That said, I still certainly crave the well-made ones, much more than the derivative fluff that comes out nowadays (I'm looking at you The Proposal and The Back-Up Plan) Good films last, and they satisfy :) When you can have something like (500) Days of Summer, why settle for less? Well I can promise you I'm not settling, just trying to stay informed. That's my excuse anyway. But, my answer for seeing the movie is simply because I like the experience of seeing movies...even if the only thing I get out of it is just to be able to rag on a product. Or maybe they're just my guilty pleasure...like good ice cream or something. That said, it pays to know when you're being indulgent.

I think what it comes down to though is that I just have a love-hate relationship with the romantic comedy. They are the easiest films for me to watch, yet they can be the most offensive with their ridiculous portrayals too. It all began with Sleepless in Seattle where after that point, nothing was too far fetched in terms of plot. This is true. The strength of (500) Days of Summer is that it doesn't examine some silly plot...it examines an actual relationship. There's no catch....it just shows us how a guy fell in love and dealt with all of the feelings that brought. I think more romantic comedies would be better if they focused on that.

As for the movie... Well, it was completely predictable, and not very funny at all. It also made me never want to become pregnant (far too much gross-out humor.) It relied very heavily on reaction shots from a tiny dog for laughs from the audience...so you always know that's a good sign (I hope the sarcasm is noted.) My roommate Laura remarked that it was just trying too hard the whole time. I would agree. I think what makes the run-of-the-mill rom-coms a bit better, is if the audience can buy the two characters together and their romance, and/or if the film is funny enough to compensate for the formula. But neither of these factors was present in The Back-Up Plan. I would probably have to give this about

RATING: 3/10