Review of I Give It a Year (2013) by James W — 27 Dec 2013

Another gamble on buying a movie that I haven't seen, and it turned out to be a tennar extremely well spent. I Give It A Year is a romantic comedy with a twist, in fact it's a reverse/anti-comedy that starts with the wedding straight away instead of ending with it, and ends with a shock that you don't see coming.

Any comedies that are based on weddings are always hilarious, well to me it seems that way, and yet again this is another wedding comedy that dishes out the dysfunctional families, immensely awkward best man speeches and a whole host of hilarious set pieces, this is up there with Bridesmaids, A Few Best Men and other classic weddings comedies.

I Give It a Year keeps away from cliches and predictability, and it keeps you guessing which of the two will give in first and end their relationship. The cast are outstanding, each of them sharp in their comedic timings and all featuring character traits that are laugh out loud, but best of all is Olivia Colman who seriously turns the crude and outrageousness up to crazy levels as an ignorant, dismissive and aggressive marriage-guidance counsellor, she steals every scene.

The story's structure isn't like other comedies, it flips from different times of Nat and Josh's relationship, and then jumps back to them in the company of Colman's guidance office. I'll admit that the ending does feel rushed, as if the writers were desperate to tie up the love triangles, but from this speedy ending the pace continues to roll along nicely, and it's great to have a happy ending in a rom-com that actually for once, delivers a nice twist and changes the conventions of this genre.

This is pure brilliance in British comedy, it's filled with deadpan, sarcastic and crude humour and the cast are extremely talented, I love it, definitely worth watching over and over again.