What's Your Number?

What’s Your Number, the new romantic comedy starring Anna Farris, opened up yesterday to, from what I’ve read, some pretty lackluster reviews.  While, as you’ll see in a moment or two, I’m not going to praise this film, I will say it has its moments.  Also, whenever one takes in a movie such as What’s Your Number, or any RomCom for that matter, you should have a pretty good feel for how the film will play out before ever paying for your ticket.   

The trailers for movies in this mold often capsulize the tale.  They seem to consistently offer a good many of the high points and key moments, while providing a fairly accurate overview of plot. 

Within the trailer, or simply by looking at a newspaper ad, more clues are being offered that can easily be overlooked.  By noticing who the actors and actresses are we can gain insight into the type of characters we’ll see on screen.  Oftentimes, in this particular genre, the leads are typically chosen for personality traits they’ve done a good job with in past performances. If an actress seems to have a good handle on the frazzled girl routine one should expect a similar, if not identical characterization to appear in their newest role as well.   

But even without seeing a single trailer or reading any review, one can formulate an idea of how the film will play out, simply by knowing that it’s a Romantic Comedy. 

Romantic comedies are as old as drama itself. For the most part, they seem to nearly always follow a basic formula that is, in most cases a derivation of the “boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back” storyline.  With this being the norm, I can’t condemn a film for following what others have done before. 

A template, so-to-speak, has been deemed successful and therefore continues to be copied and played with each time a new genre-specific offering is made.  What should be looked at though, is how the writers and directors distinguish their work from the many others that have come before it.  Usually this separating-from-the-pack idea plays out in the form of original inciting incidents, refreshing resolutions, underlying meanings and/or messages and last, but not least, chemistry between the lead actors.

In What’s Your Number, the formula plays out as “girl meets boy, girl loses boy, girl gets boy back,” which is a simple character change to the traditional formula.  Here we have Anna Faris (Scary Movie, The Hot Chick, Mamas Boy, The House Bunny), playing Ally Darling, a girl who has a knack for meeting, and sleeping with, Mr. Wrong.  After being fired from her marketing job, on the train-ride home, she comes across an article that states the average woman sleeps with 10.5 men in her life.  Ally is taken aback in disbelief, as her own number is almost double this figure. 

This particular scene gnaws at her, as she then proceeds to try listing all of her former lovers.  Her preoccupation with this idea is brought out publicly while out for her sister’s bachelorette party.  In this scene we find out that not only does Ally have a much higher number than all of the girls in the wedding party, but that the article also states that once women get past twenty lovers, their chances of never marrying increase dramatically.    A drunken Ally makes a vow that night, that the next man she sleeps with will become the man she marries.  Later that night she finds herself naked in bed, with her ex-boss, who just fired her earlier that day. 

The inciting incident came in the next scene.  She was out shopping with her sister Daisy, played by Ari Graynor (Whip It, Youth In Revolt, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Fringe(TV)), when Ally had a revelation.  She realized that, through her sister’s relationship with her fiancée, how men can change over time, and those who weren’t right previously might be today.  Ally thought this notion was pure genius, as she needed to make sure she didn’t go over that magic number 20, and this plan, in theory, assured her of that.

So Ally began tracking down all her previous lovers, but quickly realized that being a detective was much more difficult than she had anticipated it to be.  Enter “girl meets boy,” when her neighbor Colin, played by Chris Evans (Cellular, Fantastic Four, The Nanny Diaries, Captain America) strolls through her door. 

Colin is shown to be the type of guy that brings a different girl back to his apartment seemingly every night, which, in itself says something about his character, but the fact he purposely sneaks out of his own apartment lying in wait for his “date” to leave says a bit more.

It turns out that Colin is very good at investigating.  The two make a pact, Ally will allow Colin to use her apartment to avoid his one-night stands and he’ll help her track down all of her previous lovers.

The bulk of the remaining scenes show Ally meeting her exes, where for one reason or another, oftentimes humorously, things don’t work out, again.  During this time though we can see the two leads growing closer and love does seem to be in the air.

Despite the promising feelings seemingly shared between the two, Ally is being steered away from Colin, by her naysaying friends and when she finds out he wasn’t disclosing everything to her.  Ally confronts him about the latter “issue” and when he holds firm to his lie, she tells him to leave and in so doing, despite Colin’s reasonable defense, we get to “girl loses boy.”

All seems wonderful as Ally meets the “man of her dreams,” yet something doesn’t seem right and eventually she turns Mr. Perfect down, rushing off to take a final shot to make things right with Colin.  When they do get back together the formula is then complete with “girl gets boy back.”

So how does What’s Your Number stack up, in terms of distinguishing itself from the many varieties of this type of film that has came numerous times before?  Based on the four factors brought up earlier:

Original Inciting Incident:

The magazine angle spark of inspiration has taken place a number of times before, yet this happened to be an interesting take, as it not only connected to the overall theme but it also brought out the question of “second chances,” therefore I’ll give a grade of B- for this category.

Refreshing Resolution:

The last second recognition of what one wants and the seemingly “impossible” quest to make things right has been done so many times before, whether it’s running to catch a person before they board a plane or to make a last second attempt at stopping a wedding, I hope to see something original in the resolve.  In this movie we don’t get anything original at all here, certainly nothing refreshing.  I just felt like the only thing missing from making the resolution thoroughly cliché would have been to increase the stakes in a way that included a time limit, that if not met, all would have been lost.  I’m glad they didn’t include that bit, but still the ending did not impress, my reasoning for giving it a D.

Chemistry Between Lead Actors:

I thought Anna Faris and Chris Evans had pretty good chemistry with one another.  A scene to illustrate this would be the basketball scene that led to a swim in the harbor, where the two seemed perfect for one another, a combination of a complete trust in the other and a few genuine moments of endearing qualities that followed.  The chemistry could have been better but it was good enough, so I’ll give it a B+.

Underlying Messages:

The underlying messages in What’s Your Number are: one should feel comfortable in their own skin; one should do what feels right, never conforming to what others want for you.  The idea that being your own person is strong here.   During the various scenes where Ally remembers her past lovers we can see how she consistently tries to adapt herself into what she felt they wanted, whether it was handing out political flyers, wearing a nose-ring or giving up meat.  Conversely we get to know how much she loves the little figurines she makes.  Leading up to the climax we see Jake, Ally’s Mr. Perfect, asking her to travel the world with him, that she has nobody here holding her back and her little hobby can certainly be put on hold.  The Ally we saw throughout most of the film would have jumped into his arms and agreed, disregarding what she wants, which is completely different that the person Ally had evolved into.  In the end we see a woman who learns what she likes and acts accordingly. For the messages I give the film an A.

Overall, if you’re looking for a romantic comedy and have the ability to overlook the formulaic rehashing of plot, What’s Your Number might be something I would recommend to you.  It has an interesting premise, decent chemistry between the actors, some funny moments and some romantic ones as well.  Certainly a lighthearted comedy where you don’t have to overthink each seen.  Perhaps a good film for someone that simply wants to zone out with a few laughs after a mentally stressful week.

Tracks Taken

Thought I'd paint something a bit more open this time.  It seems like, from looking back at the other paintings I've done, that I have a habit of packing design, image etc... into as much space as I can.  Now while i have to admit that I never really thought about it before, the more items/images et al, within a piece adds to it's complexity, and when you're trying to get all symbolic and abstract, the more the merrier, or so I say.

Yet for this piece I thought I'd free up the canvas, leave more open space.  Yet I still wanted to come up with something in the abstract.  I wanted to tell a story and to lead that story a long in a linear pattern.  I wanted symbols to represent the story and to tell it in a certain way.  I think I did that here.  I certainly could have painted the picture a bit different, yet I'm pleased with what I got out of this exercise, as primitive as it may appear, therefore I chose to post it here.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I did creating it.  Again, I'd like to thank Mr. Paint for the brushes for the sticker spray, they come in really handy and I used a couple of them on this piece.

Wordplay Exercise

I thought I would share a wordplay exercise I use from time to time.  I use this exercise whenever I am looking for a connection of an organic or internal sense.  I only use logical rationale for the composition of each new word.  I typically begin with a single word, in this case I started with relate.  From there I start moving as far as I can without changing the "DNA" of the initial word.  Once I run out of room, no more prefixes, suffixes etc.. I start to see if I can break a word into two or more separate words that still make sense as one when put together.  In this case I took Relate and made it into Real late, Real elate and so forth, playing around with it for a while while trying to remain as true to the original composition of the starter word as possible.  Then when I feel I'm done I look at all the changes I made and kind of mark down a VS. system, in this case it turned out to be Real Vs. Reel.  I've added two more, well one more and the last one is basically an offshoot of the second exercise, you'll see when you scroll down that far.  

Once the exercise is complete I usually am able to find something I can use creatively.  Most of the time it's used for poetical purposes but I have found numerous ideas for sketches and designs in the past and paintings more recently.  If nothing comes from it, well, I still find it a pretty fun game to play, but I'm like that though, I love wordplay and word games in general.  Have fun with it, you never know what will strike you and in what way it could:)

Relate

Relating

Relation

Relations

Relationship

Relationships

Real elations

Real elation

Really elate

Reel elation

Reel elations

Reel elate

Re-elate

Reel elating

Real elating

Real late

Reel late

Real Vs. Reel

Forage

Foraging

Forager

Foragers

For agers

For ager

For aging

For age

For edge

For edging

For edger

Fore edger

Forest

Foresting

Forester

For rest

For resting

For fester

For arrest

For arresting

Four rest

Four resting

Four arrest

Four arresting

For arrester

Fore arrester

Fore arrest

For Vs. Fore Vs. Four

Something Borrowed

Something Borrowed, Review of the Film, but the book is available at booksellers nationwide, including Amazon.com.  I find films rarely live up to the novels from which they are formed and have included a convenient link in case you would like to head down that path.

Typically I won't be reviewing this type of film. No, I have nothing against films based on books, nor do I against films primarily marketed to the female demographic.  In fact, keep this a secret, I actually enjoy films that deal with the inner workings of relationships, adjustment, transition and Love.  However, that all said, I rarely spend the money to go see this style of film at the theater.  Netflix or cable, sure.

Anyhow, I did go and see Something Borrowed yesterday, and not because I was under any obligation to another person.  The reason I saw this film is, by all confessional standards, shallow.  Ever since I first saw Big Love on HBO I've been mesmerized by Ginnifer Goodwin.  I can't pinpoint the reason other than the simplicity of her being I find genuinely attractive. Very few actresses have the box office draw/magnetizing control over me.  I can name them on six fingers.  But I'm getting beside myself here.

A caveat:  I did not read the novel by Emily Griffin, but as with all books to film, I like to see the creation from each aspect, therefore I will do that eventually, and most likely revisit this review at that point.

From a film standpoint:  The setting of NYC offers overdone but never passe visuals.  The buildings, the streets, the small shops.  Without gushing too much, it's a city like no other.  But what I find so nice about this film is the contrasting settings and all that go with them, between NYC and the Hamptons.  The two, despite their relative proximity to one another are two completely separate worlds, from the hustle and bustle, overcrowded streets of NYC to the sprawling landscapes and relaxing transparency of the Hamptons.  For the purpose of this film the contrast goes much deeper.  Two best friends, Goodwin and Kate Hudson, are so close yet so far apart in so many categories it's a wonder how they could be or could ever have been close to one another.

What I Liked the most:  The well drawn, if not exaggerated, characters. Each character had their own appeal and defective parts.  Without examining each character from an individual viewpoint, I would like to mention how, again, a well drawn compare/contrast is effectively displayed.

Hudson's and Goodwin's characters I've touched upon but a subtle reflection/symmetry is seen through Dex and Marcus.  This isn't as well defined as the Hudson/Goodwin dynamic but it is a nice mirroring provided for the audience.

What I disliked:  Ethan, the male confidant to Goodwin's character got the shaft.  It was painfully obvious how his character felt towards her, and his relationship was again a reflection of the unsaid, fear and letting go that her character for the longest time felt for Dex.  When he did tell her how he felt, it obviously wasn't going to work out, which he knew beforehand, yet because of all his preaching to her about laying all  your cards on the table and to be decisive he practiced what he preached.

I guess I found this unsettling, not in the portrayal or the dynamic itself, but because it happens.  Who hasn't felt so much for someone else only to have them love someone else.  Hits home.  This wouldn't have been so dramatic if, at least in my mind, Ethan deserved her and Dex did not.

Anyhow if you've read the book or are a fan of this style of film, or simply like watching the inner workings of relationship, this film is for you, or could be for you.  If you are looking for a romantic comedy, although Something Borrowed has its moments, this film may not be for you.  If you need a small to medium cathartic cry, you may be surprised how easily you'll relate to, or at the least have seen before, each of these types of characters, and therefore become vested in their success and/or failures.