Friends With Kids
Director:
Jennifer Westfeldt
Cast: Adam
Scott, Jennifer Westfeldt, Maya Rudolph, Chris O’Dowd, Kristen Wiig, Jon
Hamm, Megan Fox, Edward Burns
Friends With Kids
is a comedy that addresses the eternal question of whether men and
woman can ever just be friends, but throws a baby into the equation.
Jason (Adam Scott)
and Julie (Jennifer Westfeldt) have been friends for more than 15 years
and even though their friendship is strictly platonic, they do and share
more than many romantic couples. When friends around them start settling
down and having children, they decide that the best idea would be for
the two of them to have a baby together so they avoid any of the marital
problems that arise from having children. When baby Joe comes along, the
plan seems to have worked perfectly, until the inevitable happens and
Jason and Julie start dating other people.
Friends With Kids
is entertaining enough to keep you watching to the end and if you are
not married with children yourself, is enough to make you wonder whether
you should just ask your closest friend of the opposite sex if they
would like to be the mother/father of your child because to begin with
it may well just be easier! In the short term anyway. Plus the scenes of
love between a child and its doting parents warm your heart.
Although there are
some funny moments, the moments are probably too far and in between to
call Friends With Kids a successful comedy. The large majority of
laughs come from Maya Rudolph and Chris O’Dowd’s hilarious banter as
married couple Leslie and Alex. However, the main couple of the film,
played by Adam Scott and director and writer of Friends With Kids
Jennifer Westfeldt, have a severe lack of chemistry as best friends let
alone anything else. Their dialogue sounds just like a memorised script
rather than a conversation between the closest of the closest friends.
Of course it is a memorised script as they are in a movie, but the whole
point of a film such as this is to feel like you are watching reality
take place. However, both Scott and Westfeldt have their good dramatic
moments which save the film for them. Kristen Wiig and Jon Hamm add to
the mix as struggling married couple, Missy and Ben and both give very
good performances.
The audio of the film
is completely suited to the film. There are some soft and sweet tunes
that remind you that the film is primarily about love between family and
friends. The special features on Blu-Ray include bloopers, the making of
Friends With Kids and alternate scenes. The bloopers are
particularly welcome as if you find that you felt like you didn’t laugh
enough in the film, they add some extra laughs. Most of the bloopers are
of Rudolph and O’Dowd, which is welcome as you wish there had been more
of their witty banter between each other in the film.
Friends With Kids
is not a bad film, but maybe not the film for you if you are in the mood
for a good belly laugh. There are some good performances and some real
heart-warming moments, but its mediocre script and lack of on screen
chemistry between characters leave a bit to be desired.
