Review of Friends with Kids (2012) by Fdt44 — 09 Mar 2012

Much to the akin of a cross between vintage Woody Allen meets Manhattan-set tv sitcoms "Seinfield," and "Friends," with a hint of "Sex and the City," this 'romantic-comedy' doesn't short-change the genre itself; it's both romantic and is certainly funny.

From the writer and director, who brought the lesbian-spun quest of finding love in one's 20's to life ("Kissing Jessica Stein"), comes the boundlessly talented Jennifer Westfeldt, who not only writes and directs, but also stars (with also real-life spouse Jon Hamm) in this ensemble comedy.

Again putting a twist on relationships, Westfeldt, this time, delineates seeking love in one's 30's...with a baby. The story centers around the lives of two best friends Julie (Jennifer Westfeldt) and Jason (Adam Scott).

Each live in the same apartment building, and each engage in frequent one-night stands. Among their social circle, are other couples,who all gradually resort to having kids in their relationships, including the domineering wife Leslie (Maya Rudolph) and her emasculated, subservient laggard husband Alex (Chris O'Dowd).

They are the first couple to have a baby. Next, Ben and wife Missy (Hamm and Wiig) have a child. Once their innocent infatuation with child-rearing manifests itself into an actual child, though, the two naive lovebirds resort to heated bickering.

..like children themselves. When Julie and Jason realize that they get along better than the already married and now-parents, they begin to consider having a child of their own: without the "marriage.

" The characters' logic stems from the view that most marriages, statistically end in divorce, and that since on average they tend to fail more than they suceed, having a child without the "unnecessary" complexity, would somehow make the situation easier.

It lost me too. Regardless, the two friends continue dating, Julie meets empathetically sensitive Kurt (Ed Burns), while Jason stumbles upon tantalizing Mary Jane (Megan Fox). So, the once strictly platonic friends begin to become 'friends' with, a bit more, than meaningless, innocuous 'benefits.

' Among the benefits of 'Friends' is a vivaciously committed cast, that has a sense of resonance and on-screen cohesion that may be due to the majority of the cast having already worked together in "Bridesmaids.

" Nontheless, they congeal and show real, plausible emotion. Also ballasting the film is a slick script that supports the actions of its characters, and inevitably, makes it worth watching; it touches upon a real-life element in social interaction upon friends--the jealousies, judgments, artificialities, and genuine emphathy--that rings a tune of realism.

As expected from an ensemble comedy, each of the characters turns in a serviceable performance, Rudolph and O'Dowd being the most distinguisable--too, having worked together in "Bridesmaids"--and being the largest beneficiaries from the strong script.

Hamm maintains his charismatic coolness, as usual, though Wiig is arguably the least effective; her role is simply too restrained and irrelevantly peripheral; she's wasted. Furthermore, the two leads are strong, especially Scott, who finally is given a primary role to showcase his causticly acrid demeanor and rapacious output, that the viewer can see and feel him deliver; he shines.

Though Westfeldt pulls off an amazing task of directing, writing, producing, and starring in the film, she creates her own character as coming off slightly too simpering and needy. By the latter half, "Friends with Kids" becomes all too predictable, and loses its originality, resorting to genre-specific cliches, and all too-familiar unfunny, ribald humor.

In addition, the film is completely oblivious to its various audiences: it's too progressive for some, not enough for others, and perhaps a bit too aloof from the implications of its subject. Having said that, notwithstanding the right intangibles, the film treats its title characters (the kids themselves) as being mere innate objects, burdens laden with excrement and cacophonous sound, of which don't deserve solid, fully-committed, fully-faithful parents; the 'kids''s needs are shown as being offensively inconsequential.

The underlying message: it's acceptable to have children if it makes "us" happy. Where is the mention of children's happiness? Casting the moral and ethical concerns aside, "Friends with Kids" is one of the better rom-coms made in quite a while.