Search - I Love You, Man on DVD

Lewis P. (Turfseer) from NEW YORK, NY
Reviewed on 12/19/2010...

Quirky 'bromance' vacillates between moments of mirth and outright crudity

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

'I love you, man' reminds me of Seinfeld: it's much more farce than comedy. Like Seinfeld, the protagonists are likable but offbeat and quirky and the antagonists who oppose them are far more neurotic (proverbial 'damaged goods') than the protagonists. It should be noted that one of the co-writers is Larry Levin, who wrote for 'Seinfeld' back in the 90s.

Peter Klaven (played by the amiable Paul Rudd) is a real estate broker in Southern California who's about to get married to Zooey (Rashida Jones). Peter feels embarrassed by the fact that he has no close male friends and is determined to find a best man for his wedding. It's made clear at a family gathering that Peter always felt more comfortable around women in contrast to brother Robbie who of course has no trouble meeting men and his father Oswald, who boasts about having a lifetime male best friend.

Peter then goes out on a series of unsuccessful 'man-dates' where he meets one loser after another. One of those dates is Robbie's crazy personal trainer colleague who has a funny bit 'losing it' at an LA Galaxy soccer game. There's also another weird guy Peter's mother fixes him up with; it turns out he's gay and ends up kissing Peter outside the restaurant they went to for dinner. This character pops up later and he's amusing as a frustrated stalker.

Less successful is the gruff Barry, husband of Zooey's good friend, Denise. Peter is reluctantly invited over for some male bonding at a poker game and ends up throwing up all over Barry after a night of drinking. I didn't really see the humor in the Barry character, as he is supposed to be some humorless macho guy who is continually reminding Peter that he doesn't fit into the world of male camaraderie. Finally there's Tevin, Peter's fellow real estate associate, who obnoxiously keeps asking Peter whether he'll consider going partners on selling an expensive house which Peter has been rep-ping for real-life actor Lou Ferrigno (TV's 'Hulk'). Tevin is not a very funny or endearing character especially when he suggests that Peter promote himself by putting his image on urinal cakes in well-known, local restaurants.

It takes about 25 minutes into the film when Peter finally meets his 'bro', Sydney Fife, at an open house which Peter has organized in an attempt to sell Lou Ferrigno's house. Sydney reveals to Peter that the only reason he shows up at these open houses is for the food and to possibly pick up available divorcées. Peter is drawn to the aggressive, single Sydney after he proves to be quite intuitive in discerning the true motives of some of Peter's prospective buyers. In a bizarre bit, Sydney observes how one prospective client sends his date to look at another room in the house as he doesn't want her around when he farts. Even when we learn that Sydney refuses to clean up after his dog defecates on a Venice boardwalk, Peter is more fascinated than repulsed by the extremely eccentric Sydney. Sydney's belief that dog doody is good for the environment is a turn-off but it IS funny when he morphs into a lunatic and begins screaming at the guy who tries to call him on his refusal to clean up, after his dog relieves himself.

Peter proves to be just as quirky as Sydney but in a much more good-natured way. One of Peter's perennial tics is his blurting out of things he doesn't mean to say as well as assigning nicknames to Sydney which make no sense. For awhile, Sydney's single life proves attractive to Peter. They bond at Sydney's cluttered bachelor pad even though Sydney reveals he has a small 'station' in his house reserved for masturbation. Peter also has no objection to Sydney's firm conviction that no discussions about their sex lives are off-limits. The only 'normal' thing that the odd couple seem to share is a love for the rock band 'Rush'. After revealing that he used to play bass in high school, Peter accompanies Sydney (who plays guitar), as they jam to Rush songs at the bachelor pad.

Eventually, Sydney's confrontational style gets Peter into hot water at his engagement party. Cryptically, Sydney reveals that Peter is somewhat unhappy with Zooey as she doesn't appear to enjoy oral sex. Peter escapes Zooey's condemnation during the car ride home, when he calls her on her earlier revelations of their sex life to her friends.

Peter and Sydney's relationship reaches its apotheosis when Peter lends his buddy $8,000. But he also plants doubts in Peter's mind as to why he's involved with Zooey at all. When Peter foolishly expresses the same doubts to Zooey directly, she leaves him to stay with her girlfriends. Peter has had enough, dumps Sydney and makes up with Zooey. Meanwhile, Sydney uses the $8,000 to buy billboard space, promoting Peter as a hot shot realtor. All's well that end's well when Sydney's efforts lead to a great amount of new business for Peter while Zooey ends up calling Sydney at the last minute to attend their wedding as Peter's best man.

'I love you, man' loses its comic edge when Peter and Sydney get real serious and break up. The sentimental ending could have been much improved, had the film's scenarists decided to have Peter's life unravel more intensely than merely depicting the short breakup between him and Zooey. One alternative could have been to have Peter lose his job and then being saved after Sydney's billboard plan is brought to fruition.

In the end, I wondered why some of the film's foul language couldn't have been toned down a bit. What's more, jokes such as likening Anwar Sadat to a dog can be interpreted as a true insult in the Muslim World. While not a laugh out loud farce, 'Man' has its moments of mirth.

2 of 6 member(s) found this review helpful.

Steven H. (sehamilton) from BIRMINGHAM, AL
Reviewed on 2/26/2010...

I gave this film 3 stars. It wasn't the laugh-out-loud movie I expected given the hype on the cover, but it had its moments. A nice film to watch with a date; no nudity, sex or violence; few expletives. Although one reviewer compared it to My Best Friend's Girl, this film is not crude. If you're looking for something over-the-top like MBFG, this isn't it. Still, a decent film.

1 of 4 member(s) found this review helpful.

Sara R. from PITTSBURGH, PA
Reviewed on 11/25/2009...

Hilarious! If you're a fan of movies such as Pineapple Express, My Best Friend's Girl, Old School, etc. this is a must-see!

0 of 5 member(s) found this review helpful.

Suzanne B.
Reviewed on 8/27/2009...

Bromance blossoms between Paul Rudd and Jason Segal in this film with several very funny moments. Paul Rudd takes on the lead for a change, and he does not disappoint as an insecure, awkward, and basically friendless groom-to-be in search of a new male buddy willing to be his best man. Somehow, he forges a bond between himself and the oddball played by Jason Segal, whose laid-back demeanor is the yin to Rudd's yang. Rashida Jones is Rudd's too-good-to-be-true fiancee whose spoken concern over Rudd's friendlessness leads to the search for a man-friend. Good flick to watch as a "date night" DVD or when you need a few laughs. P.S. Segal's "Man-cave" bachelor pad is sure to make many guys envious!

5 of 6 member(s) found this review helpful.

Karen D.
Reviewed on 8/22/2009...

I liked this Movie I wasn't sure what to expect when it first started out but it soon turned into this funny movie about a guy Peter Klaven who has never had a Male friend in his life and how Peter and his girl friend the women of of his dreams decide to get Married and he realizes he doesn't have any Man friends to be his best Man at his wedding so he goes on this search to find a Man to become his friends he at first as no luck and ends up giving up on the whole Man friends idea that's when he meet's this funny guy named Sydney who is a planner with no desire to commit to a women and he has this desire to have a good time as often as possible they hit it off as soon as they meet and they end up hanging out and becoming friends His fiancée gets jealous of him spending so much time with Sydney at the end however she gets used to the idea of having him around and excepts it. And they end up becoming friends also.

0 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.

3.5 stars-Enjoyable, escapist comedy

B. Martin | 08/19/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"First, a disclaimer: this is not a Judd Apatow movie nor is it affiliated with him in any way other than the fact that two of his usual supspects-Paul Rudd and Jason Segel are the main stars. Apatow's comedies are messy affairs that feel largely improvised and run the gambit of emotions. I Love You, Man is a tidy, streamlined comedy that flows along smoothly from beginning to end without asking much of the viewer other than to sit back and be entertained. It's also, a genuinely funny movie that creates a warm glow of male camraderie thanks to the effortless chemistry of it's two leads. The plot is simple. Paul Rudd is happily engaged to his fiance and is generally considered by her and her girlfiends to be the perfect boyfriend. There's jost one little problem: he doesn't have any guy friends. Realizing that he needs a best man for his wedding, Rudd goes on an assortment of "man-dates" in an attempt at some much needed male bonding. He finds his man-friend when he meets Sydney Fife, played by Segel. The two bond over a shared love of Rush music and eventually, Rudd's character starts to spend more time with him than with his fiance. This is not exactly a fresh, or innovative plot and you can see the ending coming a mile away. But in the case of I Love You, Man, it's all about the journey. Segel is hilarious as the overgrown man-child Sydney and Rudd is in fine form as well. His attempts at establishg a laid back, guy rapport with Sydney often lead to some akwardly hilarious moments. There are also funny supporting perfromances from Lou Ferrigno and John Favreau. In the end it's not as funny, complicated or profound as an Apatow film, but that's because it isn't one. It's just a fun, escapist, feel good comedy about the enduring friendships between guys. Nothing wrong with that."