Cliché-bashing He's Just Not That Into You tells it like it is

By Jackie Ammons     2/12/09 6:00pm

The new film He's Just Not That Into You claims that it is not a "typical" chick flick and that it goes beyond the conventional realm of the genre by cutting out clichés. The movie's iTunes podcast touts the film's lack of certain undesirable, overly-sentimental and formulaic scenes, such as random outbreaks into song, makeover montages or hysterical crying scenes. And it's true: He's Just Not That Into You avoids the traps of usual chick flicks and produces a funny, enjoyable and not-so-typical one.Based on the self-help book by Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo, He's Just Not That Into You structures itself by first giving the audience a pearl of dating wisdom - "he's just not that into you if ." - and then showing how the proverb works in the relationships of couples in the movie.

The film begins by focusing on Gigi (In the Land of Women's Jennifer Goodwin) and on dating advice from her friend Alex (Zac and Miri Make a Porno's Justin Long). It then examines married couple Ben and Janine (Yes Man's Bradley Cooper and Inkheart's Jennifer Connelly), including Ben's fling with yoga instructor and singer Anna (Vicky Cristina Barcelona's Scarlett Johansson). Foiling Ben and Janine's relationship are Beth (Marley & Me's Jennifer Aniston) and Neil (Smokin' Aces' Ben Affleck), an ever-committed but still unmarried couple of seven years. Additionally, the film touches on spacey Mary (Beverly Hills Chihuahua's Drew Barrymore) and her budding relationship with realtor Conor ("Entourage"'s Kevin Connolly).

The film's many plotlines may seem exhausting and confusing, but He's Just Not That Into You organizes them well. The multiple couples and their intertwined relationships keep the movie's pace upbeat and its topics relevant and entertaining for a wider audience.

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The structure of the plot - inserting pieces of advice, then demonstrating them in the lives of the characters - may interrupt the storyline, but it also simplifies the film and makes it more original. For example, after showing the words "he's just not that into you if . he doesn't call" on the screen, the movie immediately cuts to Gigi impatiently waiting by her pink princess phone and then staring at her cell phone during yoga class.

While the movie pokes fun at girls for their complacency in relationships, impatience to marry and desperate attempts at dating, it does so in a constructive way by directly confronting the issues instead of meandering around them. This fresh approach makes He's Just Not That Into You seem more like a how-to or self-help movie rather than a fictional film, thereby adding a sense of reality and credibility to its characters.

The all-star cast playing these characters enhances the film's plotline even more. Goodwin's character, painfully desperate to date, is hilarious to watch when placed against Long's cocky, know-it-all persona. Furthermore, Connelly and Johansson's contrasting roles complement their unique acting styles.

One of He's Just Not That Into You's mantras is "you are not the exception; you are the rule." However, this movie is the exception, for He's Just Not That Into You provides a uniquely complex blend of comedy, drama and a distinctively honest perspective on social relationships.

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