Reviewed by Kate Rodger
It's Complicated
:: Director:Nancy Meyers
:: Starring:Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin
:: Running Time: 120 mins
:: Rating: M
:: Release Date:In cinemas now
:: Trailer: Click here
While It’s Complicated is not nearly as complicated as the title suggests, this movie is certainly entertaining.
Meryl Streep is Jane Adler, divorced for a decade, after her husband leaves her for a much younger model. She owns and runs a successful bakery, has three adoring children, and a gaggle of screeching girlfriends hell bent on getting her back into the dating scene.
Then Alec Baldwin sidles back onto the big screen as charming ex-husband Jake. He somehow sweet-talks himself back into his ex-bed, and into the affections of his ex-wife, which of course brings a whole tonne of trouble.
The story plays on the idea of unfinished business, and in the hands of these two very talented actors with a great chemistry, this theme makes for much movie merriment.
Along with Streep and Baldwin there’s perennial Nancy Meyers favourite Steve Martin. He is Adam, a recently divorced architect who becomes the cat among the pigeons, as Streep wrestles with her past and her present, in order to move on into her future.
Another excellent piece of casting here is John Krasinski from The Office, who plays Streep’s soon-to-be son-in-law Harley. He hit the big screen last year in Sam Mendes film Away We Go, and he brings his warm and gentle screen presence and great comic timing to the fore here too.
It’s easy to see the film’s appeal at the US box office, and both Streep and that rascal Baldwin also scored awards nominations for their performances (Streep a Golden Globe nod and a BAFTA nomination for Baldwin). Meyers also got a Globe nomination for Best Screenplay.
With the fat trimmed off this would have been a much better film, and there are certainly cliché’s a-plenty. But with a funny script in the hands of such a great cast this film punches above it’s weight, and ends up a light and tasty highly entertaining rom-com for the grown-ups.
4 stars.