No Strings Attached
My postings on films have been rather short lately, and this one will probably be no exception even though I feel like I have an endless rant to go on with this film. How stupid it is, how sad it is, how incredibly 2010 everything feels like (characters, music, direction and whatnot), why I dislike Natalie Portman now, why “real” sex friendships are totally different from what is happening in the film and, ultimately, how little the film has to do with myself. This is especially strange, because even though I am not an MIT graduate, I come closer to the stereotype of the strong and independent female scientist than anyone can probably get.
However, I do not feel like ranting. To some degree, I understand how much the film is “like us”, but as a million other reviewers have pointed out, the film is ultimately very conservative. (Why is the only female character who marries in the film 22? And why is she giving up school for that, how 1950’s is that?) Sure, the film had funny scenes, Ashton Kutcher turned out to be surprisingly cute and it was ultimately much more likable than about any other romantic comedy out there, but all that doesn’t change the fact that just thinking about it bores me.
Originally I wanted to watch the film because of “Friends with Benefits” and this video on Youtube, and I am still planning to see it for comparison, but really, I expect that both of them are going to be ridiculous and not too much of a revelation. As much as “No Strings Attached” made me relationship-emo like almost every love/friendship movie in this world, I can’t really say that it was as fruitful as “Closer”, “Before Sunrise” or even “The Notebook”.