Definitely, Maybe (2008)
Directed by Adam Brooks
Written by Adam Brooks
Starring Ryan Reynolds, Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Weisz, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Derek Luke, Kevin Kline
Release Date February 14th, 2008
Published February 13th, 2008
In his first mature leading man performance Ryan Reynolds becomes a star before our eyes in the terrific romance Definitely, Maybe. Call it his Sleepless In Seattle moment, Reynolds becomes the new millennium answer to Tom Hanks as he establishes his romantic leading man street cred opposite not a single Meg Ryan but three tremendous young actresses on three completely different star tracks.
There is the capital A actress Rachel Weisz, already a hairs breath away from Oscar. Elizabeth Banks, the comic character actress. And then there is Isla Fisher, who is still too young to know where her career is headed. Reynolds sparks with each and makes you believe that indeed one man could get that lucky in his life.
Definitely, Maybe stars Reynolds as Will Hayes an ad exec who has just received his divorce papers. He's been headed for divorce for awhile it seems. Will see's his daughter Maya (Abigail Breslin) on Wednesdays and Fridays and is on his way to pick her up as the opening credits wrap. On this particular Friday Maya's school is abuzz. Today the kids took a surprise sex education course and all are bursting with questions. All of this talk of sex has Maya wondering where she came from, not necessarily the technical details, she learned all too much of that, rather about how mom and dad met and how they are where they are today.
Dad is not so hot on telling the tale and thus devises the story as a romantic mystery, leaving Maya to guess which of three women from his past is her mother. There is Emily (Elizabeth Banks) not her real name, who was his college sweetheart. They split up when he went to New York. It's more complicated and messy than that but that comes later. Then there is the copy girl aka April (Isla Fisher). She makes copies for a living in the Bill Clinton for President campaign office where Will has come all the way from Wisconsin to work. Politics of the early to late 90's play a big part in Definitely, Maybe.
And finally there is Summer Heartley (Rachel Weisz), a woman from Emily's past who Will meets when he delivers a present to her from Emily. What that present is has all sorts of surprises attached. Summer is an aspiring journalist sleeping with her esteemed professor (Kevin Kline) when she meets Will. They bounce around each other a little before the girly crush on the professor passes and Summer wants to get serious. She and Will share a relationship with many twists and moments you will not see coming.
So which girl is really mommy? Which girl is also the ex? That is the mystery and the secret charm of Definitely, Maybe.
Writer-director Allan Brooks isn't teasing the audience or screwing with us just to keep us off track. What he devises, structurally and with these terrifically charming and smart characters, is a romantic mystery that in-trances and enchants.This seemingly typical romantic comedy defies convention by mixing three different romances and allowing us to guess, take sides, and hope for our favorite to win out. Leading the guessing game is 12 year old Oscar nominee Abigail Breslin. In yet another devastatingly cute performance, Breslin charms us into a romantic journey that would be lonely and a little dreary without her hopeful, doe eyed presence.
The humor of Definitely, Maybe is warm and comfortable. It emanates naturally from these characters without the force of set ups and punchlines. The skill of Brooks' script may not occur to you until much later when you realize just how invested you are in the outcome of this mystery. Listen for the subtle ways Brooks uses politics as an undercurrent of Will's emotional state. His optimistic investment in President Clinton's promise of hope in 1992 juxtaposed against his disillusionment with his love life and the scandal that engulfs Clinton's presidency. This sets up a final moment in the movie so subtle; blink and you'll miss it. It's a minor scene but it means so much if you follow the context of the film as a whole.
Definitely, Maybe doesn't necessarily break the mold of the traditional romantic comedy. Rather, like the best of the gentrified genre lot, it takes the typical and improves upon it. The formula is familiar, it's just better performed, filmed and crafted in Definitely, Maybe. Rather than limiting himself to what is expected of the romance genre, Adam Brooks goes in slightly off kilter directions. He tweaks the formula, changes the expectations and, by creating wonderful characters with just the right actors, he changes the dynamics of the formula romantic comedy, bends it to the will of his story and creates something special.
Indeed, Definitely, Maybe is something special in the romantic comedy genre.
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