Life As We Know It - Movie reivew

LIFE AS WE KNOW IT
U/A; Dramedy/Romance
Dir: Greg Berlanti
Cast: Katherine Heigl, Josh Duhamel, Josh Lucas
Rating: ''



WHAT'S IT ABOUT: Don't you just hate it when your friends set you up on a blind date they just know is headed for disaster? And don't you hate it even more when they make you the godparents to their only child (which means you'll be seeing more of each other than you'd like to)? And then, conveniently ufffd die? In a freak accident, no less.

Well, if you do, you'll relate to the 'hardships faced by Eric aka Messer (Duhamel) and Holly (Heigl). Both are singles and hate each other's guts from the time they meet and couldn't bear to (or care to) be in the same room as each other. Their bests friends Peter and Allison, however, seem to be oblivious to this and name them as guardians of their child, Sophie, in the unlikely event that they both die.

The godparents, Messer and Holly, love Sophie to bits but at the same time, are at a loss to make sense of the madness that ensues. One is a up-and-coming baker while the other works in the camera department as a senior technician for a leading sports team. Both find their lives go for a toss when a child enters the equation.
Will they kill each other while trying to be together for their godchild? Or survive the ordeal of forced parenthood?

WHAT'S HOT: The Clagett triplets who play Sophie are endearing as is Britt Flatmo, who plays her babysitter, Amy. Heigl's strength lies in dramatic scenes and unfortunately, she carries that demeanour into her comic scenes, opting for deadpan where slapstick is required. But that said, she is charming and great to look at, however sorry the plot is.

WHAT'S NOT: The trouble with romcoms is that there's a fair chance you've seen the basic premise repeated through countless flicks ad nauseam. You keep thinking the writers would be bothered with tinkering with the genre. But it seems that they're not interested in fixing this one if it ain't broke. Formula trumps experimentation here, leading to yet another predictable offering. Heigl and Duhamel are kind of an odd pair despite being great-looking together. Forcing the two to be together at the end of the film is a put-off.

WHAT TO DO: This one is best enjoyed as a TV movie and ideally, should've made it straight-to-DVD. Ah well, nobody's perfect. Maybe they'll learn the next time.