Most chick flicks are just that, flicks for chicks. Guys don’t like them, don’t talk about them and usually won’t admit having seen them. Girls leave the theater crying, swearing that it was the best movie of the year, and overusing the word literally when talking about marrying the star male actor.
Not this time.
No Strings Attached was awesome. Let’s start with the cast. Every guy in the theater wants to marry Natalie Portman, and every girl in the theater wants to marry Ashton Kutcher. They played their roles well, were convincing enough to not be classified as fake and cheesy and clearly had great chemistry together. Oh yea, and they are both hot.
As for the script, there were so many quotable lines, which gives this movie some longevity in society. Generally, it’s a story about a guy who falls for a girl who is not interested in a having relationship. This leaves for for all sorts of dialogue that audiences can relate to, especially in college crowds.
When a movie is quoted day-to-day, it helps to bring the movie into our culture – Seinfeld is most famous for this. One of such lines was by Portman, who, when called “smart” for her schooling at MIT, responds with, “my neck really hurts […] because my brain is so big.” Lines like this were evenly peppered throughout the film, keeping laugh-out-loud moments very homogeneous in the experience.
Of course there is plenty of the tacky chick flick romance, but that is to be expected in some capacity. This time, however, it was infused really tactfully with more of the traditional “guy humor.”
The closest a chick flick has come to capturing a male’s attention in the last five years was probably Devil Wears Prada. Well, I’ll say the devil can wear whatever he wants; this movie was more fun. If you are waiting for this to come out on DVD before you see it, be less cheap. Fork over the ten bucks – $29 if you want popcorn – and see it while everyone else is seeing it. Yes, it’s that good.
My only complaint of the film – and I think I speak for everyone of both genders – is that Natalie Portman didn’t have a nude scene.
Definitely check out this film – it makes for a great date movie. If you can’t find a date, I’ll go with you and see it again.
