Review: He's Just Not That Into You (2009)

[Steve Rhodes]

HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2009 Steve Rhodes

RATING (0 TO ****):  **

I'll say this much for HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU.  While the movie is a 
comedic dud, it's at least good enough to engender lots of conversation 
afterwards about how it could and should have been so much better.

Director Ken Kwapis has trouble hitting an effective middle ground when it 
comes to comedy.  His last film, LICENSE TO WED, starring Robin Williams and 
Mandy Moore, was a frantic flop with every joke being way over-the-top.  In 
contrast, HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU takes a big bunch of A and B list 
stars and shows them sleepwalking through the entire production.

Only Ginnifer Goodwin (Margene from "Big Love") consistently shines. 
Stealing every scene she is in, Goodwin's performance and her endearing 
smile are the only possible reasons to see HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU.  The 
rest of the cast of what feels like thousands, but is probably only tens, 
includes Scarlett Johansson, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Connelly and Drew 
Barrymore.  None of the women, except for Goodwin, are the least bit 
memorable, but the men are especially bad, giving very generic readings of 
what is supposed to be acting.

The movie is a one-joke affair, based on a book by Greg Behrendt and Liz 
Tuccillo.  The joke, with its many slight variations, revolves around when 
and under what circumstances someone should call another after or before a 
date.  Of course, one variation on this theme is what it means if the other 
person doesn't call back.  There isn't a single scene worth a big laugh, 
but, to be honest, you'll probably laugh a little every now and then.

What is infuriating about HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU is that so many of the 
problems are definitely fixable, especially given its strong cast.  Let's 
start with the easiest.  There is no reason, especially when your material 
is this thin, to bring the movie in at a running time of over two hours. 
Romantic comedies need to be breezy and crisp.  Cutting a half hour out of 
HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU would easily make it much better and more 
focused.

Really good movies with well-written scripts can effectively utilize large 
casts.  But, if you've only got one idea, you don't want to spread it around 
among too many characters, or none of them will be well developed.  Of all 
the single and would-be single people in this narrative, almost none of them 
are more than one dimensional.  This means that whenever they get themselves 
in trouble by cheating or by confessing their cheating, the audience just 
doesn't care.

John Bailey's cinematography does none of the actors any favors.  With the 
film's lackluster colors and its unflattering lighting, the movie made you 
want to go home and watch just about any series on your HDTV so that the 
images won't appear so second rate.

Finally, if your director can't elicit some terrific performances with 
actors such as Johansson, Aniston, Connelly and Barrymore, it's time to 
replace him and get someone who can.

HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU runs 2:09.  It is rated PG-13 for "sexual 
content and brief strong language" and would be acceptable for kids around 
10 and up.

The film opens nationwide in the United States on Friday, February 5, 2009. 
In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the AMC theaters, the Cinemark 
theaters and the Camera Cinemas.

Web: http://www.InternetReviews.com
Email: Steve.Rhodes at InternetReviews.com

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