Day 158: I Give It A Year

A couple realise that married life isn’t the fairytale they were quite expecting but they agree to try and wait a year to see if that’s what they need.

If you’ve both realised that there’s a problem and you know you’re not right for each other then why wait a year? Just bloody end it now and you can stop making each other miserable. Nat (Rose Byrne) was getting annoyed at Josh (Rafe Spall) for always being in the house and not taking the bin out/putting the toilet seat down, but surely they lived together before they were married so she would’ve known all this before now? I mean, it was never said if they did live together or not beforehand but who gets married without living together first nowadays? I just don’t believe that they wouldn’t have been aware of their incompatibility long before now.

There were some laughs but overall, it was a bit boring. I didn’t really care what was happening and the ending seemed a bit implausible.

5/10

Day 37: Adam

Adam (Hugh Dancy) is trying to get used to his disrupted routine now that his father has died. Beth (Rose Byrne) is a new tenant in his building and they take a liking to each other. Talking to people is difficult for Adam because he has Asperger’s but being with her helps him.

When they first meet, she seems really nervous and just keeps talking. He responds awkwardly and she takes it to mean that she’s done something wrong rather than it being a difficulty he has with social interaction. She invites him out with her and her friends but he is so nervous about it and eventually doesn’t go. You can see he really wanted to so in order to make it up to her, he sets up a projection of space in his apartment to share it with her. There are actually a lot of cute moments like this: he takes her to see the raccoons in the park late at night then the next day leaves her coffee outside her door because he knows she’ll be tired for work, he tries to clean her windows (dressed up like an astronaut!) so she can see the stars, she gets him a book on how to find work for someone with Asperger’s and you can see he’s really touched. And they finally kiss! They are just the loveliest.

He gets fired and has to find another job but going through an interview seems like an impossible challenge for him. So she helps him even though her family is going through a difficult time and it’s exactly what he needs. Sadly though he finds out she lied to him and takes it very badly, reacting so angrily that it scares her. Eventually the problems with her family come to a head and her father is going to prison so she goes to stay with him before he leaves. But Adam has to see her again and so goes miles out of his comfort zone and travels by himself all the way to her. He tells her he got a job and it’s in California and he wants her to come with him. But she doesn’t think he could love her, not in a way that is recognisable to her, so she doesn’t go with him. He almost doesn’t go because he thinks he needs her to be there but he eventually understands that what he needs is to go, even if she isn’t with him. And so he does. A year later we can see he has come along well and she sends him a copy of a children’s book she has written that is named after him.

Then a song I love comes over the credits ('Can't Go Back Now' by The Weepies): 

“I can’t really say why everybody wishes they were somewhere else

But in the end the only steps that matter are the ones you take all by yourself”

Couldn’t fit better with the film.

8/10 

Day 32: Bridesmaids

Annie (Kristen Wiig) is having a rough time of it; her business went under, her boyfriend left her when that happened, her fuck-buddy is an asshole, and she is living with odd strangers. But her best friend, Lillian (Maya Rudolph) is getting married and she’s trying to keep it together so she can be there for her. Not helped by Helen (Rose Byrne), Lillian’s new friend, who tries to take over everything and upstage Annie at every opportunity. The film follows Annie hitting bottom and it causing problems for her friendship with Lillian.

Judging from my description there you’d think this was a sad film but it manages to remain funny throughout. Probably the funniest moment being when they are dress shopping. I remember seeing the film in the cinema and everyone was just laughing so loud, it was great. The line delivery of all the cast is perfect, couldn’t have got a better cast for it.

Helen makes me sad. She’s clearly very lonely despite being popular. Her husband isn’t interested in her, her step-kids hate her, she finds it difficult to make friends. She’s so desperate for a best friend that she sabotages the relationship between Annie and Lillian. And while that’s obviously wrong, it’s difficult to hate her for it when it’s so clear she’s lonely. Saying that though, she did put a real butterfly in the invitation. Who actually does that? A psychopath, that’s who.

Actually all of the bridesmaids are interesting. Megan (Melissa McCarthy) is my favourite though. She’s so unapologetic for who she is and she’s clearly got it all worked out. I love when she goes ‘round to see Annie and she tells her what she needs to hear to get her back on track. “You’re your problem, Annie. And you’re also your solution.” Nothing is going to fix itself unless you take charge and fix it for yourself.

Since it’s a film including weddings, I guess it’s only right if I talk about how I’d like my wedding to be. Not that I spend a lot of time thinking about it, marriage seems like an odd concept to me. But sometimes when you’re daydreaming you get to thinking about things. I’ve always pictured it taking place at night, outside. There’s snow falling but it’s not too cold. And there are candles and fairy lights everywhere, and maybe a fire in the background. Not too many people, either. Big weddings just lose the intimacy that I think it should have. And there would be the minimum amount of stress. Why do people stress themselves out so much about one day? Focus your stress on the fact you’re going to have to stay interested in one person for the rest of your life. That is so much more stressful.

8/10