To those unfamiliar with the term, a bromance is when two platonic guy friends spend a ridiculous amount of time hanging out together and are almost like a couple.
This is the subject of the year’s best comedy (so far) “I Love You, Man”. The film is about Peter (Paul Rudd, “Role Models”, “Knocked Up”) a real estate salesman who proposes to his girlfriend Zooey (Rashida Jones, “The Office”), and realizes that he does not have a best man.
[view:node_ad=5]Peter is the type of guy who all through his life never connected with guys and thus has a plethora of girlfriends. To fix this, Zooey encourages Peter to go on “man dates” in order to find a best friend.
After many unsuccessful and hilarious “man dates” Peter meets Sydney Fife (Jason Segel, “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”, “Knocked Up”), a free spirit who Peter immediately connects with. As soon as they become best friends the audience is treated to several montages of Sydney’s antics ranging from botching a toast at Peter’s engagement party to picking a fight with Lou Ferigno (“The Incredible Hulk”). Meanwhile Zooey starts to become jealous over the amount of time Peter spends with Sydney.
While the script does follow the conventional romantic comedy formula, it works because Rudd and Segel have an amazing amount of chemistry. Segel is the MVP of the film; he has the best lines and also manages to balance Sydney’s lunacy with some an emotional depth.
Rudd also continues to prove his worth as a leading man after being a great supporting player for so long. The rest of the supporting cast adds to this film as well, including Andy Samberg (“Saturday Night Live”), who nearly steals every scene as Peter’s gay brother and Jamie Pressley (“My Name Is Earl”) who does wonders as Zooey’s best friend with a small amount of screen time.
“I Love You, Man” is a comedy that follows the current trend of balancing toilet humor with the right touch of sweetness. It makes a great date movie and can even provide women with an insight into the inner workings of the bromance. For men, this is the movie to earn your “romantic comedy points.” Oh, and I definitely encourage those who see the movie to stay through the credits (it’s worth it).