Review of Love Happens (2009) by Matthew T — 16 Dec 2017

A flat out drama that at the end goes for the tear ducts...to the point where its somewhat obvious. Yes in some way its a romance but its more a character story centered around a dichotomy. A self help guru that is in need of taking his own advice. Aaron Eckhart is the primary force in this film and too his credit keeps the film moving along with him going through various moods. Even when the film starts to slow to a crawl with typical romantic and/or scenic shots of a big city, his character seems to throw a wrench into the more happier moments which forces the drama to take hold again and moves the film along.

Jennifer Anniston plays more of a supporting role, being a woman who wants more from a relationship with Eckhart's character but knows she has to first help him to see that he needs to confront certain truths of his past because he hasn't truly moved on from a tragedy. She in fact tries to do for him what he does for his patients which is to realize a future where he can be free of his own remorse. Dan Fogler is also worth noting here because he takes on a role far different from his typical goof ball roles and actually does a decent balancing act between being a business manager and a good friend to Eckhart's character.

The film overall is well constructed and gets credit for trying to add depth to what could have been a silly romance, but unfortunately it also seems to get buried down a bit too much by the weight of its drama that its lighter, comedic or sentimental moments seem to flounder. Ultimately this film falls into the category of a Lifetime movie and not the hip uplifting date/romance movie as it was "advertised" in its own commercials to be. Still its not a bad way to spend a couple hours, especially if your looking for a film that has the potential to produce tears in one's eyes, or you are looking for a movie where the story takes precedent and where the sappy language and awkward love scenes are surprisingly absent. Delightfully so, I might add.