“Someone Like You…” keeps its plot simple: Jane Goodale (Judd) falls for a TV exec on the set of her startup show (Kinnear) – except there’s a catch. Kinnear’s Ray Brown is in a committed relationship but he wants out – or so he thinks. After a whirlwind romance, and weeks before moving in with Jane, he backs out, sending Jane on a quest to discover why males ‘can’t commit.’ At the behest of her columnist friend Liz (Marisa Tomei), Jane delves into a ‘New Cow Theory’ (that is carried on in the film for far too long) – which attempts to explain why men always leave women for a newer specimen when offered the chance. Of course she’s emboldened in her quest by her work partner Eddie (Jackman), a serial womanizer who avoids commitment like the plague.
If this all sounds cliché to you, it is, and if you assume (correctly), that there’s more than meets the eye to these characters, you’d be right. The acting is apt, though the main characters are more or less constrained by a script that wants them to be one dimensional. For instance we have Kinnear, who while charming in “As Good as it Gets,” here plays a man who knows what he wants, changes his mind, then wants it again.
Jane is no better developed, spending a quarter of the movie in love, another half depressed and cynical, her catharsis postponed to the film’s near conclusion. And Jackman, a terrific actor as evidenced by his roles in films like “Les Miserables” and “Prisoners,” is here constrained to the cynical playboy. Of all these characters Eddie has the greatest arc – even if it isn’t completed until the movie’s near close, in a heated scene with Judd in his apartment that validates both their emotions with pain and realism.
You can’t blame “Someone Like You…” for trying. It takes a simple concept – a search for companionship and love, and explores it in a way that, while cynical, is never hopeless. It’s filled with thoughtful scenes (such as one between Goodale’s sister and her husband that shows Jane what true love can be, and another as Eddie bumps into an ex that is well-acted and realistic); and, while Jane’s awakening is slow going, she’s never painted as vindictive or mean. Under it all, these are nice characters. Their desires and motives are simple, and over the course of the movie we grow to like and understand them.
Some other players, such as Catherine Dent, who plays Jane’s sister, and Ellen Barkin, who plays the film’s talk show host Diane Roberts, round out the cast. Barkin in particular plays a bigger role than initially thought. And Kinnear, while one-sided, fits into the plot in important ways; ways that won’t be spoiled here. It all fits together; and what works about “Someone Like You…” is that while its characters are often cynical, the movie isn’t – a discovery less intelligent films such as “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” simply don’t share.
The characters here are all pleasing to watch, and there are no real acting missteps. If you’re a fan of Judd, Kinnear, of Jackman, you know just what to expect. It has a lighthearted soundtrack, featuring songs like “Someone Like You,” written and performed by Van Morrison, and “It Must Be Love,” performed by Madness. It’s ending is little short of predictable; and while not as sweet as “Pretty Woman,” or even Chris Evans’ “Before We Go,” you’re still pleased to see it end the way it does. It suffers from a lack of character development and exploration – but at the end of the day, it delivers just what you’d expect from a romantic comedy – lighthearted fun and escapism. If that’s what you’re after, you could do much worse than “Someone Like You…”
– by Mark Ziobro
