Director: David Wain
Starring: Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Bill Hader
Release Date: June 27, 2014
Director David Wain has tasted success before, he has not one but two Primetime Emmy Awards in his cabinet for his work in Childrens Hospital and has won 'Best Short Film' for Aisle Six at the Chicago International Film Festival. The more bizarre Wain makes his works the funnier the outcome. I still laugh out loud whenever I see Wet Hot American Summer. But that film came out in 2001 and since then Wain's movies have not made me laugh the same way and perhaps it has something to do with Wain leaving his indie roots. 2008's Role Models had its moments and 2012's Wanderlust could have been way better with the performance its actors gave. But now Wain is back with not only his indie roots but with a big chunk of cast members from Wet Hot American Summer in hopes that They Came Together can bring back the laughs.
They Came Together is a parody of the standard conventions of romantic comedies which follows Joel (Paul Rudd) and Molly (Amy Poehler) who first bump into each other on Halloween while wearing matching Benjamin Franklin outfits. They are at an instant dislike for each other and things only go downhill for Joel as Molly finds out he works for a company that wants to run her store out of business. The hostility doesn't last long as soon as the duo finds out they actually have a lot in common.
There are two films that I always try to avoid to watch as much as possible, horror films and romantic comedies. Horror, because nowadays it's rare to actually find a film that scares me. And romantic comedies due to the fact they are all the same. Yes, you'll have different characters, plots, and settings but the overall structure is the same. I'm guessing David Wain has felt my pain as well because They Came Together is a big laugh at the typical romantic comedy setup.
They Came Together follows the storyline of the beloved You've Got Mail, replace Tom Hanks with Paul Rudd, Meg Ryan with Amy Poehler and a book store with a candy store and you get the same premise. Wain also tackles what all romantic comedies have in common for the most part beautifully. Amy Poehler is a klutz so female viewers won't see her as a threat and she has an assistant who helps her with relationship advice but has no life of their own. As for Paul Rudd, he is Jewish but not in a threatening way (they made sure you wouldn't forget this fact throughout the film) and he plays basketball with his friends while they give each other relationship advice.
Every scene for the most part throughout the film will have you laughing. No, you won't be laughing out loud but you'll chuckle here and there at minimum. Wain had a set goal and he achieved it and he would have done it perfectly if it wasn't for a couple of tasteless scenes that the film could have lived without. Even though this film contains laughs and a Judge Judy cameo that I did not expect, I would not see the film in theaters but it is worth your money. Having it in your DVD collection is a must especially if you have grown tired of the romantic comedy genre. I am happy to see Wain go back to his indie routes and hopefully he doesn't leave that again.
Labels: 2014, Amy Poehler, Bill Hader, David Wain, DVD, Movie Review, Paul Rudd, They Came Together
