Review of Going the Distance (2010) by Bamf226 — 05 Sep 2010

Romantic comedies have gotten stale. Typically, the male and female leads hate each other and then end up together. How many times do we have to watch that? Thankfully, Going the Distance isn't anything like the stereotypical romantic comedy. Garrett (Justin Long) falls in love with Erin (Drew Barrymore) while she is interning at a newspaper in New York. Knowing that she will be going back to California after her internship, the two of them decide not to get too serious. However, it ends up more serious than either expected and the two of them struggle to keep a long distance relationship going.

The flow of the movie follows along with the sentiment of the movie. In the beginning while the relationship is new and fun, the tone of the movie is very light-hearted and laugh out loud hilarious. Seriously, Going the Distance is one of the funniest movies this year and had me laughing heartily over the first hour. As the relationship takes on a more serious note while Garrett and Erin try to figure out how to handle this long distance relationship, so does the whole mood of the movie; the jokes basically disappear, much to my chagrin.

My biggest disappointment is the ending. Let me put a *SPOILER ALERT* here for those that might be completely oblivious to how romantic comedies work. Yes, Garrett and Erin get together in the end, but the ending isn't satisfying. Although the two of them end up together, there is an uneasy vibe between the two characters. After being apart for so long, the movie doesn't give the characters a chance to reconnect before the credits roll, as if the script was yanked out from the writer before he (or she) penned the epilogue.

Going the Distance is one of my favorite romantic comedies ever. It strays from the norm and it is hilarious, at least for the majority of the movie. People who have gone through long distance relationships are likely to connect with the characters while watching the joy expressed when seeing that loved one after months apart as well as feel the heartache as the characters deal with the distance. This is a great date movie that will entertain male and female alike, totally worth the price of admission.