Crazy Stupid Love

This movie was absolutely hilarious. No beating around the bush about it, this was one of the funniest movies I have ever seen in my (relatively) short life. It is also one of the most romantic movies that I've seen in 2011 so far (I haven't seen "Friends with Benefits" yet, which incidentally was playing at the same time as this movie did at the theater I went to).

What makes this movie so laugh-out-loud worthy, and simultaneously so painfully sweet, cringing-ly realistic (yet obviously fictional), and unthinkably sexy? Is it the stellar acting performances? Yes. The polished, crackling dialogue? For sure. The story of heartbreak, discovery and rediscovery, and yes, love, that even the most diverse audience can relate to? Absolutely.

I mean yeah, it's got divorce, it's got way too much alcohol, and the plot seemed pretty contrived at times, which are usual turn-offs for me when it comes to movie-going, but what kept me figuratively glued to my seat was the desperate desire to find out how every single plot-thread ties itself up in the end.

The laughs that this movie got, I have to say, were well-earned and timed perfectly. There was this one scene where all the characters in the movie get together, and because of all the complex relationships that were present (Steve Carell & Ryan Gosling, Ryan Gosling & Emma Stone, Jonah Bobo & Analeigh Tipton, Analeigh Tipton & Steve Carell, Julianne Moore & Kevin Bacon), the plot comes to a high-boil and the guys are all at each other's throats while the women are all, "What the heck is going on here?"
Hands-down, the best part of the entire movie. You have to watch everything that came before in order to really get it, though.

In the end, you've got real character development, resolved issues, and a strong finish that ties up the whole movie in a big, beautiful bow.

An extra thing that I really admired about "Crazy Stupid Love" was the high production value. The sweeping panning shots, the thoughtful framing of each scene, the subtle yet distinctive background music that gave extra flavor and punch (trivia fact: one of the guys who wrote the music did "Little Miss Sunshine" and the other guy did "The Hangover" and "Date Night"), and again the abundance of talent from the main cast.

Oh my god, I haven't even mentioned Marisa Tomei! What a bombshell! Her part in this movie is so freaking hilarious I even had trouble breathing from laughing so hard! 5 words folks: Funniest, Parent-Teacher-Conference, Ever.

Check this movie out. You'd have to be "crazy" to pass it up. ^_^