Review of People Like Us (2012) by Diane S — 28 Jun 2012

Fact: Put Olivia Wilde in a movie and Iâ(TM)ll watch it regardless of what itâ(TM)s about. So itâ(TM)s even better when the movie turns out to actually be good.

People Like Us is Alex Kurtzmanâ(TM)s directorial debut, which he also co-wrote. Heâ(TM)s a bit of a mixed bag as far as his filmography goes. From good (Star Trek and Transformers), to okay (Cowboys & Aliens) to just plain bad (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen).

People Like Us (or Welcome To People as it was originally titled) is easily one of his better films and falls under the Good category. So itâ(TM)s apparently âInspired By True Eventsâ?⦠whatever that means. But I donâ(TM)t care about that. Regardless of whether itâ(TM)s true or not, that doesnâ(TM)t change how utterly compelling and engaging the filmâ(TM)s story is. The big draw here is of course the acting. Chris Pine and Elizabeth Banks in particular as the two leads are what really make the film work.

I like Chris Pine, even though he basically just plays the same guy every movie. He basically just always plays the same smarmy, cocksure, smooth-talker. But like in Small Town Saturday Night, Pine sheds his common persona in favour of some serious depth here. Beneath all of that confidence, charisma and just sheer, genuine likability is a wounded animal. This is a Chris Pine that we usually never get to see. And heâ(TM)s great at it.

Not to be a hipster or anything, but I liked Elizabeth Banks well before she was famous. I liked her well before her small, but totally unforgettable role in The 40 Year Old Virgin. I liked her in Catch Me If You Can, Spider-Man and Seabiscuit. Always the reliable performer, Banks steals the show here. Pine is very good, but Banks walks away with it.

Not only are these two performances fantastic, but the story itself is really quite intriguing as well. These characters are deeply flawed, and thatâ(TM)s whatâ(TM)s so great about them. Now unlike The Lucky One which was mostly terrible, People Like Us has legitimate reasons for all of the dramatic irony. Pineâ(TM)s character of Sam has real, genuine and totally justified reasons for not revealing the truth. It actually makes total sense. Whereas in The Lucky One, Zac Efron had zero reason or excuse for all of the theatrics.

With that being said however, the film does run into a few nagging problems. The film focuses of course on Pine and Banks, and because of this the rest of the cast just falls by the way side. Olivia Wilde, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jon Favreau and Philip Baker Hall really have nothing to do other than just fill out the background with noise.

While the film tells a good story overall, it does have certain moments and lines of dialogue that are overly cheesy and a little too melodramatic. The film is also unfortunately predictable to a fault. You can easily telegraph the entire story from a mile away.

Flaws aside, People Like Us is a solid first directorial effort from Alex Kurtzman, thanks to a great performance from Chris Pine. But mainly to Elizabeth Banks whoâ(TM)s unquestionably the very best part of the whole thing.