'No Strings Attached' another lackluster modern day romantic comedy
I was watching TV the other day when a commercial came on for Hollywood’s newest romantic comedy, “No Strings Attached.” Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher were frolicking around, asking each other the age-old question: can men and women have sex without it evolving into anything more? Then boom. A snippet from an early review of the film is christening it as “this decade’s ‘When Harry Met Sally.’”
Excuse me, what?
I’m a fan of Portman and Kutcher. Really, I am. But to hoist their (mediocre) work in a movie with modern flare, but less ingenuity, onto the same level as what is arguably one of the greatest romantic comedies of all time? I think that qualifies as pushing it.
“No Strings Attached” is what it sounds like: an above-average looking guy and girl agree to be sex friends, without establishing any sort of formal relationship when, surprise, the pair starts to have more than a shred of feeling for one another. Although this motif hasn’t been explored in recent years, the formula for this particular adaptation remains mundane and predictable. Without even seeing the film, audiences can assume both parties’ plan to remain platonic friends with benefits will mesh at first, hit a rough patch then ultimately work out for the better in the end. Now who could have seen that coming?
Sarcasm aside, all I want to know is: what happened to the epics? What happened to “Sleepless in Seattle"? “The Princess Bride"? “Pretty Woman"? Where are the tearjerkers and rom-coms you want to watch over and over again while snuggled up under the covers? Let’s face it, leading men like Kutcher and Josh Duhamel are no Richard Gere. And Katherine Heigl is certainly no Meg Ryan. Meg Ryan isn’t even Meg Ryan anymore.
With captivating stories lacking and a severe shortage of tangible humor, will romantic comedies ever be able to rise again as the indelible, charming works of cinema they once were? Perhaps even enter the same league as “Annie Hall” or “Roman Holiday"? From what I can gather, the thought seems highly unlikely.
Now I know I’m asking a lot of questions, but my concern remains true. We can only hope that one day a romantic comedy with enough substance will come along to push this new wave of repetitive rom-coms into obscurity. Until then, Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake’s new film “Friends with Benefits” opens this summer.
