FWB

In college my friend Holly and I read an article (and hung it up in our bathroom... why in our bathroom?... I have no idea) about how kids today (when I say today I mean... 2003... ugh I'm getting old) are foregoing real relationships for what they call in text-speak "FWB's." Friends With Benefits. We thought the acronym was the funniest thing we'd ever heard. The article wasn't all fun and games though, it was pretty much all these tweens saying why doing FWB was ruining their lives. Holly and I were each in some semblance of FWB-ness ourselves, which we knew was a bad idea. Maybe we hung it up as a reminder that this never works. BREAK IT OFF!

Well, last night I saw the new romcom Friends With Benefits, starring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis. Yum JT is a dreamboat. It was pretty good actually. I was teary-eyed through most of it. (Over-relating to the characters, yet again.) But anyway yeah it was way better than that movie that came out recently that had basically the same exact plot but was a horrible piece of shit - No Strings Attached starring Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman. Awful. Terrible script, terrible execution. At the beginning of Friends with Benefits, I was worried it was going to be the same. But it was great. It had heart, and it was funny. And great performances all around - I was particularly impressed with Mila Kunis and Jenna Elfman, neither of whom I usually like - they were great. Plus, Patricia Clarkson. Oh how I love her. It was still a classic romcom though so I don't really recommend it for you guys. Also, it was pretty dirty - DO NOT watch this with your parents. Awk-warrrrd.

Also, I will say now that a day has passed and I'm thinking about that article hanging in my college townhouse bathroom, I think it's a bit unfortunate that this movie ends the way it does. (Obviously they end up together in a relationship and in love at the end after all this nonsense. And, sidenote - he wins her back by organizing a flash mob in Grand Central Station... sigh.) It's SO unrealistic. I mean, this is always the problem with romantic comedies, right? And yet I love watching them. I don't always want movies to play out like my own actual life, how depressing. But I worry that this movie would give impressionable youngins like the ones in the article the idea that they should go ahead and do this as a strategy to "get the guy" or something because this scenario would work in real life. But it's really not a good idea and I have never seen it work once in my life for me or my friends or anyone I know, it always ends horribly. I saw an indie with a similar plotline, which had a realistic ending, and it was really depressing. I'm not saying they shouldn't have made the movie, or that they shouldn't have given it such a great, happy ending. I just worry that it sends the wrong message. But hey, so do most romcoms, including my favorites (uh, hello He's Just Not That Into You... everyone ends up being "the exception"?? WTF?). What can I say, I'm a woman full of contradictions.

Anyway, that's that. I really want to see Crazy Stupid Love. I love Steve Carrell and Julianne Moore. Plus the critic on the TVs in the cabs liked it, and he never likes anything. It got 4 apples!

(What is my life?!)

No Jason I haven't seen Braveheart. I know, I know, I'm sorry. You guys can put back up that No Girls Allowed sign now.

I'm going to watch a movie tonight for sure, so I'll have another post soon.