Plot (courtesy IMDB, as I didn't have a clue how to summarize it succinctly): An homage to the early 1960s sex comedies that starred Rock Hudson and Doris Day. The story follows a best-selling female advice author who has all the answers until a sly journalist playboy starts asking the questions.
Like the summary says, it's an homage. It pulled in all the standard tools of its inspirations: the split-screen phone calls, the absolutely ginormous NY apartments, the witty banter and one-liners. Plus, there were the sidekick character romance, misunderstandings and secrets kept between the leads, and twist-within-a-twist plots that any romantic comedy must have. It's a fluffy, fun movie, with a nice stylized slant to it.
For the leads, well... going in I had my prejudices. I like Ewan McGregor and David Hyde Pierce (I have a thing for deadpan). I don't like Renée Zellweger as much - she's kinda hit or miss with me. I did like her as Bridget Jones, but some of her other romantic comedies get a little irritating. It's that pucker-face thing she does. So, there are my biases; now you know.
And here's my opinion: I liked Ewan McGregor in the lead, but at the same time, it's definitely not my favorite role of his. Just didn't seem to play to his strengths somehow.... I dunno. It's not that he did a bad job with it; it's just not my favorite character of his. And yes, Renée Zellweger was there, with the scrunchy-face thing too, but not as irritating as I've found her in other movies, so she passed. Doris Day she's not, but she played well off of McGregor. And that's the key in a movie like this - the leads have to have enough chemistry to keep the banter going.
I liked the supporting cast a lot better than the leads here. David Hyde Pierce is so much fun as always. He had a quote on his IMDB profile about telling a joke in second grade "and realizing it was funnier if I didn't laugh. I've been deadpan ever since." He's perfect here as McGregor's frazzled boss and friend, stealing just about every scene he's in. His 'counterpart,' Sarah Paulson as Zellweger's chain-smoking editor, isn't quite as strong a scene-stealer, but she's still a lot of fun. And in a genius bit of casting, Tony Randall is the owner of the publishing house selling Zellweger's book. A lovely cameo from the man who was in plenty of these movies himself (typically cast in the role David Hyde Pierce played here).
The real reason to watch is for the look. The movie is just eye-candy in how they recreated and were inspired by 1962 NY-in-the-movies. The fashions and the set designs are just Fun, for a simple yet appropriate description. It's definitely a movie to watch and soak in all the little fun details in the designs. The costumes, too, are beautiful vintage fashion-plates. Zellweger's and Paulson's characters are often color-coordinated to enhance the effect. No Oscar for costuming here, unfortunately, though they did win a few costuming awards. But then, this was released in a year of historical epics as well as LotR: Return of the King, so there was some stiff competition.
Oh, and if you get a chance, watch the extras. There's behind-the-scenes stuff with the costuming that's interesting, as well as an absolutely hysterical blooper reel. Enjoy!
Overall: 3.5 of 5. A fun romantic comedy, and the sets and costumes are a blast. The innuendos get a little old after a while, but I liked the banter between the characters and the odd puns and one liners. Probably not one for the shelf, unless I find it on super-sale. A nice fluffy movie with some seriously gorgeous sets and costumes.
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