love and other drugs (2010)

It seemed that when Love and Other Drugs opened it received some of the best reviews of 2010, it made some money and then kind of disappeared. Yea it’s on home video and it’s crisscrossed on cable but largely the film seems to have disappeared. It’s a shame. After watching the film recently I mentioned it to the people in my office and they looked at me with a vague recollection and the realization that they never saw the film despite having it on their list as something they wanted to see.

The film is the romance between Jake Gyllenhaal's Jamie, a hot shot salesman who is unsure of his life, especially in light of his brother becoming a dot com millionaire. Drifting into a job as a drug salesman for Pfizer Jamie begins to climb up the corporate ladder, helped by his easy style with the ladies. As far as he’s concerned life is skittles and beer, that is until he meets Anne Hathaway, who despite feigning indifference is smitten as well. What follows is a dance of hearts as the pair maneuver around each other and find unexpected feelings with in themselves and each other.

A decided adult and strangely real romance from all all places, Hollywood. If the film occasionally dips into Hollywoodisms the film manages to get the joy and wonder and need of a real romance dead on right. There is something palpable about the feelings between the two leads that is rare in even the best recent romances. There is a real feeling here, so much in fact that when the final scenes occur it’s almost as if one is submerging in it and its weight and made somehow weightless.

To be quite honest I was shocked at how emotional and how good the film is.

Watching the film I was rather confused that the film is not more well known. This is a great romance. Why are films like say The Notebook considered chick flicks while this infitiely better film is in the shadows? I’m guessing the reason is that women want more fantasy and less reality. I guess they want the “princess” factor in it all as opposed to any hint of reality. Me give me the reality, especially when its done this well.

Definitely one to track down.