Review of Man Up (2015) by Christopher E — 28 Mar 2016

Lake Bell and Simon Pegg's chemistry makes this a fun and touching love story that will inspire its audiences not only to reach a bit farther in life, but will feel real in every way.

"Man Up" follows the story of a middle aged woman who's struggles in life, unable to get out in the world and pursue a life with someone else. On one lonely train ride, she meets a woman who happens to be going on a blind date. This woman and her blind date are using a book so that they may recognize each other in public, but when the book falls into the hands of Nancy, she will be mistaken for Jack's blind date. As she decides to go along with it, things seem crazy, but her and Jack will experience one of the happiest days of their lives, which will lead to a life changing effect.

Now, I want to start out by saying I had a ton of fun with this film. This is one of those smartly written love comedies that can make you smile, and it really is a fun time throughout. Lake Bell and Simon Pegg's chemistry on screen is phenomenal. They just seem so natural in their roles and they build well off each other. Both are great talents whose movies I adore, and they bring plenty of fun to their roles.

The thing that I loved most about this movie is that the characters were very real and natural. Nancy is this every day, average woman, who struggles to break through her fourth wall. She's lived in isolation for many years and is unsocial on a level that can even make her seem rude and ignorant at times. At first, I honestly didn't like her character. But rather than feel bad for her or feel ill toward her, it more or less felt like I was watching an actual person live this out. Simon Pegg's character, at first, comes off as this perfect and witty guy that we all wish we were, but after a few hours, you realize he has just as many imperfections and struggles that we all have. Neither characters are perfect, but in the end, you love them both.

I also really like the screenplay in this movie. The dialogue just felt so natural and meaningful, while being emotionally hard hitting at times, yet comedic. It also seemed like the actors did plenty of add lip, and again, that's due to great chemistry between the actors and a clear vision from the director.

This movie really does strive to send a meaningful message of encouragement and hope, that manages to tell it in a comedic and realistic manner. The movie had plenty of laughs and fun moments, and it really flowed smoothly.

The only thing that really brought the movie down for me was the ending. The movie was doing a good job of staying away from cliches until the end, then everything got kind of messy and weird. I wasn't completely on board with the movie, but that doesn't defy the fact that this was a really fun movie.

In the end, I realize I called "The Age of Adaline" an alright date movie, because it was, but disregard that and pick this movie up instead. It's on Netflix instant watch, and is a hell of a lot more fun than your average romantic comedy. I enjoyed this movie plentiful and I would recommend this to many people.