Tom, The Big Softie

Ok, I'll admit it: I really enjoy a well-done romantic comedy, especially as my years are ticking on by. I have a small group of geezer male friends who share the same closeted malady, but these days we have all pretty much outed ourselves. Now what I'm talking about here is a classic romantic comedy, not a so-called "chick flick," although there can be legitimate cross-over there. (Perhaps another post will ensue on that thorny distinction).

The point here is that a couple of nights ago I watched "Definitely, Maybe" on DVD and loved it. Trust me on this one. All of the main characters are terrific and well-cast, the script is snappy and loaded with hilarious zingers that are easy to miss if you're not paying attention, and best of all, you are most likely to "well up" in a couple of parts (an essential for a guy who is has come out of the closet on romantic comedies.)

I had read many laudable reviews of this movie, but had noticed that one of the "stars" listed was Abigal Breslin, the kid who is in everything these days, so I was reticent to a degree, because I was not ready for a movie with a huge "kid quotient." As it turns out Agibail's part is essential but thankfully pretty small -- she's not on screen very much at all.

The three female leads are just wonderful, but I must ask, where in the hell did Isla Fisher come from? She is absolutely fabulous in the role of "April." If you hop on over to IMDB and check her out you will see that she is not a big star (yet?), but she was great in her role in this flick. Oh, and Rachel Weisz was, as always, impeccable. The directing by Adam Brooks spot-on.

Finally, while the highpoint of any romantic comedy for an out-of-the closet geezer is always the woman/women, you still have to have a worthy male lead or the whole thing just falls apart. Here, Ryan Reynolds, was perfect. Cary Grant, or for that matter Hugh Grant, couldn't have done any better.

Cheer yourselves up and "definitely" check out "Definetly Maybe."

~ tom