Paul Rudd is making quite the name for himself as the go-to guy for comedies right now. I liked “Role Models”. It was pretty funny. But was “I Love You, Man” funny too?
Paul Rudd plays Peter Klaven, a man who has never really had a best friend, at least, not one that was a guy. He was one of those guys that always had a girlfriend and he all but disappeared from his group of guy friends to spend time with her. I know a someone like that, too (Hi Steve!). So Peter gets engaged to his girlfriend and they realize that he has no Best Man. So Peter goes looking for a good guy friend. He finds Sydney Fife, a guy that always speaks his mind, maybe a little too much. Will Sydney become Peter’s best friend? Will Peter choose him to be his Best Man? Will I like this enough to not gouge my eyes out? Go see the movie and find out!
I really like Paul Rudd. He’s a great actor and he has a way with comedy. In “I Love You, Man”, he deftly plays the awkwardness of a man now trying to relate to guy friends after spending most of his life relating to his girlfriend’s girlfriends. It’s great to see him try to find cool, catchy nick names that guys sometimes give each other, only to conjure utter verbal nonsense. To see him awkwardly try to do the macho hug/pat on the back only to uselessly fumble about with his hands, is some real comedic joy.
Jason Segel, of TV’s “How I Met Your Mother” fame, is great to watch enacting some of his guy wisdom that entails letting his dog, Anwar Saddat, crap in the middle of the Strand because it’s in their nature, as is Man’s nature to let loose a bellow or two now and again, especially if it’s right in someone else’s face. ‘Cuz, you know, it feels good, and right. Who doesn’t love a good scream every now and again?
Sydney and Peter have almost a teacher/student relationship, as Sydney casually schools Peter on the certain things that guys do. And they bond over a number of things. My favorite, as well as one of my favorite things about the movie, is their love of the band Rush. They play a rather significant role in the film, as well as have a scene of them playing live. Rush seems to be a band with mostly male fans, me included. Yeah, Rush is awesome, man. Didn’t we all jam to “Tom Sawyer” in high school?
The jokes are funny, and other than a few moments, not terribly low-brow. This movie is great for guys, yet you could bring your girlfriend to make it a date movie. It’s got a little something for everyone. Luckily, it’s smarter than the glut of horrible teen comedy stuff full of fart jokes. This has great stuff about friends, and stuff about relationships and actually has a few insights. And again, it has the funny!
The cast is great, everyone does a great job. And it’s got Rush! You can’t go wrong! And if that wasn’t enough, it’s even got Lou Ferrigno! My God, man, you can’t lose! Go with a bunch of your friends, take your girlfriend, hell, take your dog! This movie had me laughing pretty consistently. This was a pleasant surprise, and refreshing after most of those Will Ferrell/John C. Reilly vehicles Hollywood insists on shoving down our throats every ten minutes.
— Neil T. Weakley, average movie-goer; I love this movie, man.
