by: Sturdy and Kristy

He Said/She Said is a bi-weekly column where a male and female reviewer from the site team up to debate the merits of a particular film.

He Said:

There are few things more annoying in life than a single woman that spends her time in a bar and dating every guy with a pulse, but complains that she can’t find anyone and doesn’t understand why. So the prospect of watching a two hour movie about a woman that does just that was not an appealing one, to say the least.

The structure of the film is a little odd in that half the film revolves around Ginnefer Goodwin (the aforementioned annoying woman) and her struggle to find love, while the second half revolves around several other characters and their struggles. The other actors include; Jennifer Connoly, Jennifer Aniston, Ben Affleck, Bradley Cooper, Drew Barrymore and Scarlett Johansson. You might have already picked up on the fact that all of the other, lesser used actors are actually A-list, Hollywood stars and the “main” actress is someone you haven’t heard of. Make no mistake about it; this is an epic fail on the part of the filmmakers. Goodwin isn’t cut out to star in a Toyota commercial, let alone carry a film with six A-list stars in supporting roles.

The worst part about the film is that I really enjoyed every other story but Goodwin’s. I was genuinely interested in whether or not the other couples were going to make it or not and while we were following them, I was pleasantly surprised with the stories. But unfortunately, that’s only half the film. In the end, the good didn’t outweigh the bad and the result is a frustratingly annoying movie that was very close to being enjoyable.

She Said:

For the first thirty to forty-five minutes, I found myself disgusted with this film. All Hollywood needed was another movie to make women seem desperate, pathetic and downright crazy when it comes to men. I couldn’t stand the thought of watching it until about three quarters through I found myself liking the characters and feeling for them and their predicaments. It started out as a typical story about single women trying to find the right guy but evolved into a story about the more complicated aspects of relationships. Some of the storylines were dull and ended as expected but it was done well enough to change my attitude about the entire film.

As for Ginnefer Goodwin, I thought she was cute and has potential A-list status. Her character was annoying and came off as desperate, but I think anyone in that role would have the same problem; it was strictly a character issue, not an actress issue. In my opinion, Jennifer Connolly’s character was the most obnoxious; the way they had her character react to the situation she was in was a little frustrating, as it encourages the stereotype that married women turn a little crazy – not a fan of that received idea. The rest of the characters were alright, and of course I would have liked to see some storylines more than others but overall I found myself enjoying the ride, eventually.