Released in Theaters: 11/24/2010
Love & Other Drugs, directed by Edward Zwick (Blood Diamond, Defiance) is an R-rated romantic dramedy about a relationship between a studly pharmaceutical salesman and a quirky chick with Parkinson’s disease. It takes place during the 1990′s when the new drug on the market is Viagra. This flick starts out very positive looking like it will be an original and funny look at a romantic comedy, and with a stellar cast and top dramatic director the audience should expect nothing less, but the story just doesn’t hold enough interest as it moves along. The relationship between the two leads becomes pretty boring to watch and even with some decent performances mixed in, the writing sways toward the cliche especially in the third act, as the movie falls flat.
Set in the 1990′s, Maggie (Anne Hathaway) is an alluring free spirit who won’t let anyone – or anything – tie her down. But she meets her match in Jamie (Jake Gyllenhaal), whose relentless charisma serves him well with the ladies and in the cutthroat world of pharmaceutical sales, where him and his partner Bruce (Oliver Platt) get a huge new product to sell, Viagra. Maggie and Jamie’s evolving relationship takes them both by surprise, as they start to fall for each.
Edward Zwick is usually known for his dramatic films. He directed some of the best war/dramas of the past few decades in Blood Diamond, The Last Samurai, Glory and Defiance. He usually pulls the best out of his actors as he has had several of them being nominated for acting awards over the years. When it was announced he would be directing a romantic dramedy I was a little nervous. He should stick to his previous genres that he knows he is capable of making. This film is just major let down left and right, but it might not be all Zwick’s fault because the performances are there. Gyllenhaal is solid and was perfectly cast, he doesn’t have to do much to nail the role. Hathaway is superb and continues to secure herself as one of the most improved young actress’ in the industry. She has several emotional scenes and also great chemistry with her male lead.
The talk this movie seems to be garnering is about the large amount of nude scenes. Hathaway shows off her goods in several scenes, but don’t get too excited guys Gyllenhaal shows off a ton of man-butt which is never fun to seen on the big screen. It seems like the writer put in these unnecessary scenes of nudity just to be edgy and get a positive word of mouth and by the end when people are just laying around naked it almost is funny because it is completely unrealistic. Speaking of unrealistic, the worst character of the film is by far Jamie’s millionaire brother Josh, who is kicked out of his house by his wife and comes to live with Jamie for some reason. He starts off being pretty funny as he adds some comic relief, but then just becomes an annoyance. He is way over the top and is in a bunch of pointless and unrealistic situations. I wish his scenes were cut in half. The positive supporting performance though comes from Jamie’s tum guzzling partner Bruce played by Oliver Platt. Platt is just the right amount of funny and serious and actually has an interesting back story that you care about. He seems like he is always good in any role he is given, he even made me laugh in the awful comedy Year One.
So, if you’re looking for a fresh take on the romantic comedy genre then you are looking in the wrong direction. Edward Zwick should stick to his roots and Jake and Anne should be taking on more challenging roles because they have the acting ability to do so. But hey, if you like boobs and buns then go see them on the big screen just expect to be mildly entertained.
IMDB: 6.7/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 43%
Moviewiseguys: 5.5/10
