How Do You Know when it’s love? That’s the question posed by writer-director James L. Brooks’s latest film comedy. Reese Witherspoon plays Lisa, a star softball player who’s just found out she hasn’t made the team this season. Depressed, she becomes involved with both supremely self-confident baseball player Matty (Owen Wilson) and businessman George (Paul Rudd), who is having trouble with his firm and with his father (Jack Nicholson).
Of course, none of these immaculately groomed stars are believeable as troubled and neurotic. The smug confidence of their performances scuppers our ability to sympathise with their characters’ problems, creating a fundamental problem with the film.
It’s not without it’s moments – Rudd getting drunk, barbequeing a huge steak and singing into a table lamp after being ditched by his workaholic girlfriend is kind of so-bad-it’s-good. And Wilson’s particularly self-absorbed character is initially quite fun, since it’s like an even more exaggerated version of the guy Wilson usually plays. Nicholson is presumably in How Do You Know purely because of the success of a previous Brooks film – As Good As It Gets (1998) – for which he won an Oscar. But here, he’s completely unnecessary – his character’s plotline could be removed entirely without any real damage to the rest of the film.
The writing is generally not as clever as it thinks it is – it’s full of bland self-help mantras; Rudd’s “optimism is sanity” is a prime example – although the odd line resonates. On DVD, the film at least looks attractive; the transfer really emphasises the confectionery-bright colours. Also, there’s a wealth of special features, particularly notable for Brooks’s commentaries.
Overall Verdict: Bland but just about passable rom-com.
Special Features:
Commentary with Filmmakers
Select scenes with commentary by James L. Brooks and Owen Wilson
Deleted scenes with optional commentary by James L. Brooks
Extra Innings featurette
Blooper reel
Reviewer: Tom René