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A romantic comedy will generally take one of two approaches to the subject of sex. If the movie is one of the dozens of cutesy and generic PG-13 efforts that get released every year, it'll likely skirt the sexual topics and focus only on "clothed" romance (which is, of course, unrealistic). The other approach we see often is that of the R-rated crude sex comedy in which sex isn't really explored as a serious subject, but more like a gratuitous gag; in those films, we'll often see naked women for no reason other than to please the teenaged boys in the audience, and if we ever see a guy naked, it'll often be in humiliating circumstances that are "meant" to be funny. The reason why LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS is such a refreshing cinematic experience is that it rejects both of these alternatives. Sex is a very important aspect of the film's plot, but the film neither sanitizes the subject to make for a "cleaner" romcom nor does it treat it as something dirty and silly to get cheap laughs. The frank conversations that the two lead characters have about relationships and sex in the film are very much rooted in adult reality. Teenagers who have had sex but haven't been in serious relationships, or who are only interested in watching the film to see the leads naked, have no business attending a film as mature as LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS.
Jamie (Jake Gyllenhaal) works as a pharmaceutical sales representative, but the more important thing you should know about him is that he's a gargantuan schmoozer. He knows exactly which buttons to push when speaking to women and isn't afraid to let others know about his expertise. You'll be astounded by the logic he comes up with when he explains to his friend the reason why he keeps calling a woman by the wrong name every time he sees her. But Jamie may have finally met a woman who sees right through all his plays. One day, while Jamie is at a medical office trying to get the doctor to prescribe the samples he's selling, Jamie meets Maggie (Anne Hathaway), who is a patient. She suffers from stage 1 of Parkinson's disease, which means that she's completely normal, except that sometimes she has a hard time holding certain objects, opening containers, etc. After the requisite hesitation, Maggie agrees to go on a date with Jamie... and here is where the delightful unconventionality begins. During their date at the cafe, Maggie lays out all the things that she already knows Jamie was planning to tell her and all the motions that she knows he was going to go through to get her to have sex with him. At this point, we think "Oh well, guess he's not getting laid"... but surprise of surprises, Maggie wants the same thing Jamie wants. The term "friends with benefits" isn't mentioned, but it's exactly what they get into... that is, of course, until feelings start to develop and we discover that Jamie isn't really the smug and superficial guy we met at the beginning and that Maggie has issues that go way beyond her Parkinson's.
What I adore about the movie is that it's a genuine in-depth look at what happens in the bedroom during a relationship. And no, I don't mean the sex. Quite frankly, some people have overhyped the amount of nudity in the film, as if that were all that the film is about. There may be more nudity in the film than in other movies, but none of it is gratuitous. The intimacy that we get a wonderful look at in LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS has to do with the insecurities people face when deciding how serious they want to get with someone they're with, and more so, when you don't really have any actual control over how far you want your feelings to go and other impulses do it for you. Maggie calls Jamie by his last name, which is an indirect way of trying to keep a distance from him, and not letting their relationship become too close and informal, and she tells him "I really like sex with you. Let's keep it that way." But a few days later, when Jamie has a slip of the tongue and says, "This is nice," he quickly becomes paranoid, and asks "Am I allowed to say that?"
There are two moments in particular that could've easily descended into crass romcom territory (since they both involve the lead male's penis), but LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS handles both of them with oodles of class. When Jamie's feelings for Maggie start going deeper than mere sexual desire, he suddenly has a hard time getting an erection, but instead of having this be a generic "Come on, dude!" mock sequence, we get something much more authentic. The pair of lovebirds stop their attempts at lovemaking and simply lay down and converse for a while. Note to other people out there who are writing/directing romcoms: this is what we call character development. Later on, there's the obligatory sequence in which someone takes a Viagra pill and ends up having a difficult time getting rid of the erection. The pleasant surprise here is how un-exaggerated the gag is - in fact, I was shocked that, once he arrives at the hospital, the film simply moves on to something else. But it was the best kind of shock, of course.
Oh, I haven't talked much about the "other drugs" yet. I'll admit that there's nothing special about the film's ostensible criticism of the medical drug industry. If there's supposed to be any solid criticism, the arrows are a little bit blunt. One may also argue that there's a bit of contrivance involved in Jamie having to suddenly change his approach to things, when he has to switch from being the arrogant drug salesman to the worried boyfriend who needs to get his girlfriend cured. Still, when you have a relationship that is so great to watch unfold smack in the middle of the film you're watching, it's easy to overlook those things. If LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS had focused exclusively on Jamie and Maggie's struggle to walk the fine line between being "friends with benefits" and being in a relationship, the movie would've easily been great: a more sexual version of BEFORE SUNRISE. I would've loved that.
Earlier this year, Katherine Heigl and Ashton Kutcher committed the reprehensible sin of banking on their attractiveness to make for an appealing pair in KILLERS, a film that deserves to be forgotten (and with such a humdrum title, I can't imagine it'll be too hard). Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway could've easily done the same here, but they avoid it at all costs, and thanks in large part to their work, I can guarantee that LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS is a movie title that I'll remember much longer. The leads here don't let their looks get in the way of allowing them to represent vulnerable, relatable characters, and one of the reasons why that is so obvious is that, in the scenes that involve nakedness, we care more about what they're saying to each other than about the fact that they're naked. Oh, and the film has a terrific ending. No, it doesn't end with an over-the-top romantic final scene in which they kiss while the camera zooms out. It ends on a more subtle note, with some voice-over lines that capture more realities about people and relationships than a lot of films ever have.
It feels kind of like a breath of fresh air to have watched LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS after the much more somber and tragic BLUE VALENTINE. Both films are incredibly accurate in their portrayal of relationships, but LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS, while not a rosy movie in the least bit, is about how to find happiness in spite of all the bad stuff that often afflicts couples. As I get ready to post my year-end blog and come up with my top 10 list for 2010, I can at least say with certainty that LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS will get an honorable mention, and for a romantic comedy that got a wide release, that's high praise. It's one of the funniest, most delightful and honest romantic comedies I've seen in a while.
7/10
