Someone Like You

View Date: March 31st, 2001

Cast :

Writer:  Elizabeth Chandler  (based on the novel by Laura Zigman)
 

Director: Tony Goldwyn 

The cinematic versions of the 90’s love story reflect society’s propensity for over analysis of gender roles during the search to define gender roles.  Someone To Love takes the opposite side of last years The Tao of Steve, in exploring one woman’s exploration and exposure of why men do what they do, and why women do what they do, and if a common ground can ever be reached.  It mixes this viewpoint into a conventional love story and succeeds for the most part in being revelatory, sweet and brutally honest, while still being entertaining.  The performance of Ashley Judd as the lightning rod and spokesperson for an entire generation of women frustrated with trying to figure out men strengthens what could’ve been yet another sugary sweet, but unrealistic tale.  The results are expected as are the steps taken, for the most part, but the sites along the journey and the things discovered and revealed, are what will set this movie above others like it.

The story works well for two reasons, first of all, its one that we’ve seen before, with some unique touches, and its one with which most of us can relate.  Judd is the coordinator of a successful talk show, who is searching for love, without really being obvious about it.  She falls the new producer of the show (Kinnear) who is previously involved but vows to give it up for her.  Of course, things don’t work out and Judd ends up lamenting to her best friend (Tomei) and moving in with her promiscuous but straight-forward co-worker (Jackman) as a convenience.  During this time, she becomes worldly wise and revelatory in the mating habits and relationship tendencies of the male, pretty insightfully too. The rest of the film progresses in a fairly predictable manner without any really major surprises, but sometimes, simplicity, with a dash of intelligence, a dose of intelligence and some cuteness sprinkled in, can be a success.  These days films seem so hellbent on beating our emotions into submission, that they make us almost numb when a truly sweet romance comes along, even if we do know whats going to happen from the first frame.

As the heroine, woman scorned, and spokeswoman for a generation of women who have tried to figure out men’s agendas, Judd works wonderfully, showing her range from funny, to sarcastic, to emotionally hurt.  Granted, this is not the dramatic stretch that I know Judd can pull off, but it does maintain her consistent pattern of strong and believable performances.  Move over Julia, the next queen of Hollywood could be sneaking up on your heels.  Jackman, nearly unrecognizable from his X-Men debut, also does an acceptable job in his role as the man who makes no secret about his wants and desires from a woman, and his goal when meeting them.  It’s their chemistry together that raises this movie above the ton of other romantic comedies that come out of the woodwork every year.  Also Tomei, who is taken to supporting roles (also in What Women Want) actually comes across quite nicely as Judd’s confidant and foil, her accent and brash attitude are very fitting guises for women whose hearts are aching inside.  Only Kinnear, who returns to his cardboard, play-in-his sleep, egotistical jerk, and Barkin, who simply sasses around a lot, are minor disappointments in their roles, but they serve their purpose and keep the story moving until it gets back to the romance and revelations.