Friends with Kids/老友有喜

The movie is the companion of "Bridesmaids" with almost the same cast and similar theme of embarrassing love. This is not a regular warm love story, nor a classic romance; it is a description of modern love, in this era when the life gets accelerating, marriages and divorces are more efficient, the interpersonal relationships become more isolated and closer, the love-marriage-having birth could be departed from one another and love/marriage may have to depend on blind dates. The movie portrays the awkward love between friends vividly.

The movie is certainly not the cup of tea of the fans who favor pure love stories or the fans who like love comedies, as the love stories inside are so confusing. You may run into your Mr./Ms. Right or some terrible guys at your blind date; you may find your Mr./Ms. Right around you, but you may realize it or he/she may not realize it. Even when you meet with the right guy, can both of you get along smoothly? There is too much uncertainty, and this is the real life.

The roles inside look not so positive, well, isn't this a true status? Have you ever fall in love with one of your friends quietly? Confessed? What if being rejected? Hold this secret deep in your heart if you choose not to tell him/her? Any hesitation? If you hesitate on any of these questions, you may understand this movie more.

Quotes:
Jason Fryman: You think that we don't love each other? You know, I have loved this girl for nineteen years, Ben. That is fully half my life. I know everything there is to know about her. I know the mood she's in when she wakes up in the morning - always happy, ready for the day. Can you imagine? I know that she is honest; she won't even take the little shampoo bottles from the hotel room, or sneak into the movie theater for a double feature. She always buys a second ticket. Always. I know that we have the same values, we have the same taste, we have the same sense of humor. I know that we both think that organized religion is completely full of shit. I know that if she is ever paralyzed from the neck down, she would like me to unplug her - and I will. I know her position on just about everything, and I am on board. I am on board with everything about her, so you tell me, Ben. What better woman could I have picked to be the mother of my child?

本片可以视为《伴娘》的姐妹篇，基本上都是同一套演职员，而且题材也都是“容易尴尬的爱情”。本片并不是常见的温馨爱情故事，也并非古典的浪漫传奇，它描写的是现代式的爱情，是在生活节奏日益加快、结婚离婚也变得很有效率、人与人的关系已经变得既陌生又熟悉、爱情-结婚-生子可以互相脱离、爱情和结婚可能在很大程度上依靠相亲的情况下，它把朋友-恋人之间的尴尬爱情刻画得细致入微。

本片当然不是喜欢纯爱影片粉丝的菜，喜欢爱情喜剧的观众可能也不会太热衷它，因为里面的爱情很纠结。你去相亲，可能碰上真命天子/天女，也可能碰上渣男；你周围的人，也许就有那个他/她，但也许你没有意识到，或者他/她没有意识到。即使是碰上正确的人，你们能顺利地走下来吗？太多不确定性，这才是生活。

里面的角色看起来很渣，但对于观众来说，这何尝不是一种真实的状态：你可曾悄悄地喜欢过自己的朋友？表白过吗？万一表白被拒绝要怎么办？如果不表白，那是不是就一直憋在自己心里？你有犹豫过吗？倘若在这些问题上你有过迟疑，那你就能理解这部片子多一些。

Performance impression:
Director/Writer: Jennifer Westfeldt
Cast: Jennifer Westfeldt, Adam Scott, Maya Rudolph, Chris O'Dowd, Kristen Wiig, Jon Hamm, Megan Fox