“Definitely, Maybe”

Rating: 8/10

Staring

Ryan Reynolds, Abigail Breslin, Isla Fisher, Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Wiesz

The Plot

William Hayes’ (Reynolds) daughter, Maya (Breslin), wants to know the entire story of her father’s relationships before she was born. Hayes agrees, and a game ensues as she tries to piece together the stories and figure out which of the three loves in his life is her mother.

The Good

The movie is a sweet love story that could have been overly cheesy, but was done tastefully and with enough humor to make it a movie guys can also sit through. Reynolds plays a dashing young romantic and he’ll leave female audience members swooning over his good looks and witty, sarcastic remarks.

The three women of his life are also well-cast, with vivacious actresses such as Elizabeth Banks, Isla Fisher and Rachel Wiesz are each set apart by their hair color and contrasting personalities.

Appealing greatly to Gen-Xers, “Definitely, Maybe” is a hodgepodge of ‘90s nostalgia. When Will first meets April (Fisher) they are working at Bill Clinton’s campaign office in 1992. The movie moves on through his life and the historical events of the ’90s, such as the Monica Lewinsky scandal and the rise and fall of Kurt Cobain. It is fun for young audience members to see a film documenting events that were so prevalent in their lives and this helps draw the viewers into the story even more.

The Bad

Unfortunately, the movie is rather predictable given that the audience knows from the start that Maya’s mother and father end up divorced. The attempts to make the rest of the movie a mystery fall short when Reynolds clearly lacks the chemistry with two of the leading ladies.

The Lowdown

The movie realistically shows that some relationships, no matter how great they may seem, are simply not meant to be. Yet, true love can find a way when you least expect it. “Definitely, Maybe” is a heartfelt romantic comedy with subtle twists and turns leading to the happily ever after this sweet story deserves.