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Ryan Reynolds is ‘Definitely, Maybe' onto something

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Definitely, well, maybe, I mean positively, some people will enjoy Ryan Reynolds' new romantic comedy “Definitely, Maybe,” co-starring Abigail Breslin and Rachel Weisz, and others will absolutely not. The film's premise is cute enough, as is the cast, but getting all its elements to come together in an always interesting and logical way eludes director/screenwriter Adam Brooks, causing my husband to sleep and me to squirm a bit at the sometimes sappy predictability of it all. Still, this film, which aptly opened on Valentine's Day, will find its audience.

“Definitely, Maybe” stars Reynolds as Will Hayes, a soon-to-be-divorced New York advertising exec who considers his 10-year-old daughter Maya (“Little Miss Sunshine's” always adorable Breslin) the sunshine of his life. Maya, perhaps stunned by the divorce or motivated by an event at school, is suddenly determined to find out how her parents first met and with whom, if anyone else, her father was romantically involved.

Will, at first reluctant, agrees to tell all, but insists on disguising names and identities of the women, leaving it to Maya to guess which character turned out to be her mom. It is like “a love story mystery,” Maya asserts, and she settles into her bed to hear the story of how she came to be. Then the story switches and jumps into multiple flashbacks, returning only occasionally to Will and Maya in the present - too bad for us, too, because the talented young Breslin is really wasted for the most part.

While Reynolds doesn't always make good film choices, in “Definitely, Maybe,” he is well cast, as are the three female leads -Weisz (as Summer), Elizabeth Banks (as Emily), and a delightfully bubbly Isla Fisher (as April). Each lady brings to the table a different future for Will. Emily, the college sweetheart, offers a safe future of career and family; Summer, the aspiring journalist, is having an affair with her thesis advisor, a caustic alcoholic writer played by a gruff and much older Kevin Kline; and April, a seemingly free spirit who listens to Nirvana, rereads “Jane Eyre” every year and who works “just-for-the-money” as a copy girl for the Clinton campaign. Will, too, in the ‘90s works on the Clinton Campaign, but his aspirations go beyond lackey - he wants to be president himself someday.

Although the cast fits nicely into Brooks' story, the tale itself doesn't live up to his characters. It is more artificial than it should be and it fails to deliver comfortable and wholly believable warm moments. Brooks relies too often on slick one-liners and glossy situations that fail to hit the romantic comedy mark - and I am a big chick-flick fan. Now, to be fair, I can see where some ladies will like, maybe even love this film. Reynolds is engaging and the script doesn't get so involved that it jumbles or stomps on itself, but it just did not work for or impress me.

One thing that really bugged me - and my husband, who is no prude - is the reason for Maya's curiosity about her father's love history. Brooks could have easily built her inquisitiveness up because of the impending divorce or any number of other reasons for that matter, but instead Brooks chooses her school's implementation of a sex education class to raise questions. This silly and unnecessary premise offers an excuse for Maya to repeatedly screech the words “penis and vagina” over and over, as if this inappropriate language is hilarious coming from a cute 11-year-old. Take my word for it; it is not even remotely funny. I feel inclined at this point to say; another thing that grated on me was the director's decision to bring up all the ugliness of the Clinton presidency - from the Gennifer Flowers scandal to the Lewinsky fiasco and resulting impeachment trial. I find the inclusion and the timing - during an election year with Hillary running - offensive and utterly unnecessary.

“Definitely, Maybe,” rated PG-13 for sexual content, including frank dialogue, language and smoking, does have its moments. Scenes between April and Will and between Will and his daughter are particularly engaging, but they don't happen often enough and the underlying romantic premise, although not well fleshed out, offers some entertainment value. As noted, some will enjoy “Definitely, Maybe,” but I do not fall into that category, nor did most of the people sitting near me. My husband, who really should not have a vote, because he slept for at least 30 minutes, loathed it, but even with the sleeping, he had it all figured out and that doesn't speak well of a mystery - even a romantic one.

I am placing a C- in my gradebook - there are worse films out there at the moment.

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