Quick Take: No Strings Attached is a welcome deviation from the standard romantic comedy formula, boasting smoldering chemistry between Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher, along with a fantastic supporting cast.
I’m about to write a statement that could get my (non-existent) film critic card revoked. Ready? Here goes: I really enjoyed Ashton Kutcher’s new movie. Wait! Where are you going? I can explain. Yes, he’s quite good in No Strings Attached, the romantic comedy that took in $20 million last weekend. But he’s only one of the factors that contribute to the flick’s creative and commercial success.
Other reasons include his co-star Natalie Portman, a fantastic supporting cast and a clever screenplay by Elizabeth Meriwether that possesses just the right blend of crudeness, cynicism and heart. It’s also director Ivan Reitman’s best effort since Dave all the way back in 1993. The studio is actually kind of smart to release this in January, aka Hollywood’s dumping ground. It ensures the flick has a clear playing field for a few weeks before the higher-profile stuff comes along in early spring.
Through a series of cute flashbacks, complete with horrifically accurate music choices, No Strings Attached establishes that Emma (Portman) and Adam (Kutcher) have known each other for quite some time. The two almost hooked up at summer camp 15 years ago, they reconnected at a college frat party five years ago and they bumped into each other in Los Angeles a year ago. Since that time, they’ve kept in touch and become friends, but they’ve never talked about taking things to a higher level.
That all changes after Adam finds out his dad (a hilariously game Kevin Kline) is sleeping with his ex-girlfriend. He gets understandably wasted and stumbles to Emma’s house for a shoulder to cry on. One thing leads to another and they’re in the bedroom. Emma has never been the lovey-dovey type, so she suggests the two keep things strictly sex-based in order to preserve their friendship.
There’s a raunchy term for this kind of relationship (which was also the film’s working title), but we’ll stick with the PG-rated version: “friends with benefits.” It means no dating, no jealousy, no flowers or other mushy stuff. Above all, it means no falling in love. Sounds simple — even fun — on the surface, but anybody who thinks it’s sustainable has clearly never seen a romantic comedy before. It’s just a matter of who’s going to fall first, and what happens to their friendship after the fact.
The most obvious reason to see No Strings Attached is Portman, doing a complete about-face from her darkly mesmerizing, Oscar-nominated performance in Black Swan. This time around, she turns on the charm and cranks up the adorability to maximum levels, demonstrating once again what incredible range she has as an actress. You can practically feel every guy in the audience falling in love with her character simultaneously.
She also makes Emma’s emotional journey much more complex than a standard chick flick would allow. Her character’s rationale for keeping people at a distance is clear from the early scene where Adam meets her family, but Portman plays the eventual breakthrough as revelatory nonetheless. That makes sense in a way. In real life, certain behaviors often dawn on individuals even when people around them have noticed for years.
Kutcher doesn’t really do much to expand his repertoire, but his acting style happens to fit this particular character. He’s pretty much the same guy he played in Valentine’s Day (coincidentally, another one of his flicks I liked more than most critics), only instead of a florist he’s a wannabe writer stuck as an assistant on a High School Musical-like television show. Regardless, he does a good job of making the audience (well, me, at least) empathize with Adam’s dilemma. The smoldering chemistry between him and Portman was also a welcome surprise.
The supporting cast, including the previously mentioned Kline, is fantastic at hinting that life goes on within this fictional world outside of the two leads’ problems. Greta Gerwig and Jake Johnson are terrific in the “main characters’ friends who are destined to hook up” roles. Lake Bell is almost unrecognizable, playing against type as an awkward producer; Olivia Thirlby is endearing as Emma’s little sister; and Mindy Kaling has a couple of good scenes as Emma’s caustic roommate. Even rapper Ludacris gets a few funny lines.
What I appreciated most about No Strings Attached was the deviation (however slight) from the standard chick flick formula. Typically, it’s the guy stringing the poor lovesick girl along, caring only about his own selfish needs. It was nice to see the shoe on the other foot for once, and kudos to Meriwether for seeing the potential in that scenario. I eagerly look forward to seeing more of her work in the future.
No Strings Attached is rated R for sexual content, language and some drug material.
Other reasons include his co-star Natalie Portman, a fantastic supporting cast and a clever screenplay by Elizabeth Meriwether that possesses just the right blend of crudeness, cynicism and heart. It’s also director Ivan Reitman’s best effort since Dave all the way back in 1993. The studio is actually kind of smart to release this in January, aka Hollywood’s dumping ground. It ensures the flick has a clear playing field for a few weeks before the higher-profile stuff comes along in early spring.
Through a series of cute flashbacks, complete with horrifically accurate music choices, No Strings Attached establishes that Emma (Portman) and Adam (Kutcher) have known each other for quite some time. The two almost hooked up at summer camp 15 years ago, they reconnected at a college frat party five years ago and they bumped into each other in Los Angeles a year ago. Since that time, they’ve kept in touch and become friends, but they’ve never talked about taking things to a higher level.
That all changes after Adam finds out his dad (a hilariously game Kevin Kline) is sleeping with his ex-girlfriend. He gets understandably wasted and stumbles to Emma’s house for a shoulder to cry on. One thing leads to another and they’re in the bedroom. Emma has never been the lovey-dovey type, so she suggests the two keep things strictly sex-based in order to preserve their friendship.
The most obvious reason to see No Strings Attached is Portman, doing a complete about-face from her darkly mesmerizing, Oscar-nominated performance in Black Swan. This time around, she turns on the charm and cranks up the adorability to maximum levels, demonstrating once again what incredible range she has as an actress. You can practically feel every guy in the audience falling in love with her character simultaneously.
She also makes Emma’s emotional journey much more complex than a standard chick flick would allow. Her character’s rationale for keeping people at a distance is clear from the early scene where Adam meets her family, but Portman plays the eventual breakthrough as revelatory nonetheless. That makes sense in a way. In real life, certain behaviors often dawn on individuals even when people around them have noticed for years.
The supporting cast, including the previously mentioned Kline, is fantastic at hinting that life goes on within this fictional world outside of the two leads’ problems. Greta Gerwig and Jake Johnson are terrific in the “main characters’ friends who are destined to hook up” roles. Lake Bell is almost unrecognizable, playing against type as an awkward producer; Olivia Thirlby is endearing as Emma’s little sister; and Mindy Kaling has a couple of good scenes as Emma’s caustic roommate. Even rapper Ludacris gets a few funny lines.
What I appreciated most about No Strings Attached was the deviation (however slight) from the standard chick flick formula. Typically, it’s the guy stringing the poor lovesick girl along, caring only about his own selfish needs. It was nice to see the shoe on the other foot for once, and kudos to Meriwether for seeing the potential in that scenario. I eagerly look forward to seeing more of her work in the future.
No Strings Attached is rated R for sexual content, language and some drug material.
Grade: B+
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