Crazy Stupid Love: Movie Review

Crazy Stupid Love: Movie Review

Crazy Stupid Love
Rating: 8/10
Cast: Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Marisa Tomei, Kevin Bacon
Director: Glenn Ficarra, John Requa
Prepare for a romcom with a slight twist.
Steve Carell is Cal Weaver, who's been married to Emily (Julianne Moore) for 25 years.
Over dinner one night, Emily announces she wants a divorce.
And that sends Cal's world spinning into a nosedive - from what he perceives a perfect life, Cal heads to a local bar repeatedly where he sees Jacob (Gosling) using his skills to pick up women on a nightly basis.
One night, without warning, Jacob asks over Cal and offers to spruce his image up and get him some success with the ladies.
However, Jacob's grooming turns the usually inept Cal into a womaniser&.
At the same time, law student Hannah (Emma Stone) is questioning her life with her steady but slightly dim boyfriend - she heads to the same club where Jacob's practising his womanising ways and despite her initial refusal, ends up falling for him&.
Crazy Stupid Love is a bit of a treat and a departure from the usual romcom formula.
There's a heart and humanity as well as a dose of bittersweet honest reality in this film; granted, Steve Carell once again goes for the forlorn approach and dials down his comic tendencies but thanks to a good strong script, some amusing set pieces and a twist (which you're either on board with or waving at the shark which just jumped past), this really does entertain.
It's probably because Carell and Moore create a convincing couple and convey the realities of being together for so long so well.
As for the rest of the ensemble, Marisa Tomei is simply unhinged as Kate who's Cal's first score; Kevin Bacon also plays it straight as the guy who breaks up the leading duo.
But it's Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling who impress most out of this ensemble. Stone once again demonstrates why she's heading for the stratosphere with perfect comic timing and a dash of heart; granted Gosling's smooth cad and roguish womaniser isn't much of a stretch for any actor but Gosling gives him a pinch of reality too.
Ultimately Crazy, Stupid Love is a welcome diversion from the usual sop and sappy romcoms - it's funny, fresh and real with a great cast.