Of love and other addictions: from the tears of Jake Gyllenhaal to the love scenes on which Anne Hathaway had a firm opinion
The story begins quickly, it gets fully into the romance, the first part is the infatuation of Jamie (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Maggie (Anne Hathaway) that begins as pure s*x and ends up becoming love when they begin to tell their lives in a relaxed plan. , from Maggie's opening with Jamie to go to bed, under a bold exposition that avoids beating around the bush, after an unimaginative entrance in which Gyllenhaal's character manages to see a breast of Hathaway.
Then we enter the stage where we see Maggie's disease, early stage Parkinson's, her dissatisfaction with her condition and her virulent reluctance to have a serious relationship because she believes it is too great a sacrifice for one. possible partner.
Meanwhile Jamie seeks to stand out in his job, selling Pfizer drugs, among which is Viagra that makes him climb the position in his job; His dream is to get to Chicago, for that Jamie, although he is a very diligent and talented seducer, does not trust much in his ability to win despite the fact that he makes an effort and has the necessary sociability to achieve it. Among what makes him fall in love with Maggie is that she, in a small love speech, brings out so many qualities of him, those that he does not distinguish.
The film by Edward Zwick, director of Glory (1989) and Legends of the Fall (1994), has tender moments, Hathaway is about to cry all the time even with the false appearance of being very strong and determined, which is not true. , is a fairly decent performance although at times it is mellow and melodramatic, it contains for a long time the sorrowful face that becomes an effort for her and something numbing due to its overexposed character. Gyllenhaal is behind her, his performance is minor, he just presents himself as the charming prince who is willing to cope with his beloved's illness, which in the words of a guy he meets at a Parkinson's convention and who is refers to his wife afflicted with this evil sooner or later it will worsen until it becomes unbearable and will kill love.
That is the message of the film, which is very clear, love can against everything or is capable of resisting even in hell and if it is true, it takes on obligations even if they are the most arduous. It is true that we do not see the worst that the disease offers, but in history there is the commitment to face whatever comes; Jamie goes on to say that he will carry her if necessary to take her wherever he wants. Some lines are damn good even in their simplicity, when he tries to change Maggie's mind so they can get back together. Jamie tells her that he doesn't want perfection but her, and he expands like a good speaker. He convinces and softens.
The film is light, it's a romantic comedy, with some serious touches, but really nothing extraordinary, although it touches on a complex illness and love in that context. They want to implement the winning formula, a difficult subject simply exposed, in the mixture of romance, humor and drama, does it work? Of course it does, although it does not transcend the genre, but it is pleasant in its measure.
It has some good performances, especially by Anne Hathaway who has the hard part and it is to be praised that she does not look pretentious but quite normal like any pretty girl who does not consider herself a monument but tries to impose her personality and has sympathy apart from some neurons. At the same time, Jake Gyllenhaal is a good partner and heartthrob who exudes intelligence over beauty.
S*x abounds everywhere without being pornographic as is customary in good contemporary youth Hollywood, but it is presented dull and without much grace to be frank, the couple lies nak*d for quite a while although we see little suggestion, there are Hathaway's two breasts and Gyllenhaal's butt. Some jokes are lousy, the humor is a nuisance to the script rather than a way to relax the tension of the subject. The character of Jamie's brother is a thick, goofy guy with wide glasses, himself a nerd, named Josh (Josh Gad), who is abandoned by his partner (a beautiful blonde with easy se*ual disposition), who depressed sneaks off to recover in the apartment of his older brother who has recently come out of unemployment, from the contempt of his parents and who tries to formalize after living in the midst of so many se*ual adventures.
As a secondary with a lot of stereotyping, the minor only serves to fill space, he provides a passing performance that does not do much for the plot and is already tiresome to see in the cinema. Others who are there are Bruce Winston (Oliver Platt), the friend from work who has experience and is a guide to Jamie's hopes; and Doctor Hans Wright (Hank Azaria), who can't find beautiful women and trades pimping for drug advertising. Both have exposed but unresolved existential problems, which leave the motto "that's life, bad luck" hanging in the air. The script lacked more screen or was left with gaps.
The film serves as one more step in the careers of the main ones who win over the public, finally the theme is moving, the drama is not alien to us and sensitivity forces us not to dismiss it. It is a staging of a romance that demands responsibilities from us, a point in its favor, but without so much depth, as not to keep us awake at night. He doesn't boast but he doesn't have too many ambitions either. Finally it is a romantic drama with the spirit of entertaining and in the little fuss for being something, it must be rescued as a positive work.
