It's Complicated (2009)

"Divorced with benefits."

- It's Complicated

Since I was in a comedy type of mood, I decided to check out this movie. Honestly, I did not have high expectations for it - I thought it might have just been an ok kind of film. Boy, was I wrong - it was hilarious!

So, we have the main character Jane (played by Meryl Streep) who is a self reliant and divorced business woman (she owns a successful bakery).

(Note: I'm not sure if they casted her in this role because of her performance in this film - there's just so much enthusiasm involved when seeing Meryl Streep on the big screen getting excited about cooking. I'm thinking maybe it's a passion of hers in real life).

And, then there's her ex-husband Jake (played by Alec Baldwin) who is at the present time married to another woman. Though, it seems Jake wants Jane back. And, of course through a slew of encounters - they get together. As the title of the film goes, it gets a bit complicated.

So, it seems as if Jane is having an affair with her ex-husband Jake. Pretty complicated, eh?

And, of course Jane struggles with the thought that she is doing something wrong with Jake. It then becomes a game of cat and mouse - Jane tries to pull away as Jake keeps trying to reel her back in. That is until Adam (played by Steve Martin), Jane's architect, comes along.

Now, Adam seems to be the complete opposite of Jake - he is very soft spoken and basically an all around nice guy. Jake, on the other hand, is a bit of a "bad boy." So, Adam takes a liking to Jane and Jane seems to reciprocate. Though, it's Jake who then becomes a bit jealous and constantly attempts to step in and pry Adam apart from Jane.

Then, it all becomes a question for Jane - what does she want? Does she want to stay with her ex-husband Jake and continue this affair behind the back of his current wife? Or, does Jane want to start over and explore the possibilities with someone new like Adam? What does Jane want?

On some levels, I think this is a very relatable film. Basically, it's about choice - having the choice to either stay in the past or move forward and start over again. How many times has this type of dilemma come up in our own lives? I'm sure we can all think of a few moments like these.

Throughout the movie, I see a different side of Meryl Streep - the good side. It's weird because when I remember Meryl Streep on film the characters she portrays that always come up in my mind are the ones where she plays a more serious and stern role like her performance in this film.

(Note: Coincidentally, I had just seen Meryl Streep in this movie. And, yes she did play the stern type of character that reminds me of her).

Probably the last film I saw Meryl Streep in where she played a more happy, go lucky type of role was in this film. It's just a little bit weird for me to see her smiling and laughing all the time. I'm used to seeing her in a very serious role.

This film had some really good moments - I laughed throughout the movie. Though I'm not going to say it's as funny as this film, I definitely was entertained.

As for the end, it was a bit unexpected. I thought the film was going to go in a slightly different direction, so the ending surprised me a bit. But, in a good way.

Overall, I enjoyed the film. It made for a good comedy type movie - it had a lot of funny moments and I was entertained throughout.

(Note: For those who have seen the film, the scene with the laptop was classic. That was such a crazy scene, I couldn't believe that scene -it made me laugh so much!)

If you're in the mood for a comedy type of film, I do recommend this one.

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Happy movie watching!

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