I Love You, Man (2009)

There is an audio commentary by director John Hamburg and actors Paul Rudd and Jason Segel. The three guys joke and banter with each other like old friends while heaping a lot of praise on their cast-mates as this track veers into a shameless love fest at times. They also point out acquaintances and crew members who have small roles in the film. They do tell some amusing filming anecdotes which somewhat salvages this commentary.

"The Making of I Love You, Man" is pretty standard press kit material as key cast and crew members talk about the characters and the film's plot. There are plenty of clips from the film along with behind-the-scenes footage.

"Extras" features 22 minutes of outtakes as we see the actors improvise various takes for a given scene that is pretty funny, especially whenever Paul Rudd is involved as he comes up with some amusing variations on dialogue.

Also included are six extended scenes that feature the cast riffing beyond what we saw in the film.

There are three deleted scenes which feature Peter going on a man date where he plays a game of rugby and gets injured. There is a scene where Peter and his brother talk about man crushes and friend sluts over bowling. And we see The State's David Wain as a wedding photographer getting Peter and his friends to do some silly poses.

Finally, there is a pretty funny gag real as cast and crew goof around on the set between and during takes. They also take pleasure in making each other crack up.

I hadn't heard anything about this movie before my husband dropped it into my lap today and said, "watch this. It's funny." He was entirely correct. I laughed out loud so many times that watching it was totally entertaining. The silly plot didn't even matter. This was more about the performances of some talented comedic actors than it was about the contrived tale of a young groom looking for guy friends to fill out his wedding party. What I especially appreciated was that it wasn't just base-level male humor, there was some base-level female humor in there too.

Fun to watch for couples who aren't easily embarrassed in front of one another. And BTW: How fun was it to see original Not Ready For Prime Time Player, Jane Curtin??? Great ensemble cast.

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This is a very funny movie, yeah its a bit of a guy movie, well maybe a lot guy movie, some of the humor is very crude. The good news, its not mean funny, the laughs are good natured. Jason Segel, seems to be getting better and better in films.

Peter Klaven (Paul Rudd, The 40-Year-Old Virgin (Unrated Widescreen Edition), Knocked Up (Unrated Widescreen Edition), The OH in Ohio, and Forgetting Sarah Marshall (Unrated Widescreen Edition)), is engaged to Zoe (Rashida Jones, The Office Television series). Zoe has a bunch of girl friends, Peter has no male friends. In fact, Peter is very creepy around guys; and is pretty darn clingy with Zoe (she really should have run and hidden when he served the hot chocolate to her girls night out). So Zoe kind of pushes Peter into finding some male friends and manning up. Peter's younger brother (Andy Samberg, SNL) is openly gay and advises Peter on how to get male friends. Eventually Peter runs into Stewart, (Jason Segel, How I Met Your Mother, Knocked Up (Unrated Widescreen Edition), and Forgetting Sarah Marshall (Unrated Widescreen Edition)), and they quickly become friends. The movie moves into a form of love triangle at this point. Along the way, a lot of funny things happen. I really enjoyed Jon Favreau being the butt of many jokes in this film. Jamie Pressley (My name is Earl) was just outstanding in her directness.

Please don't expect this film to be cinema, its just a good solid comedy, that will appeal to a mostly male audience. Jason Segel emits confidence in this film. After doing full frontal nudity in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, he seems to have nothing more to prove. Paul Rudd is good at being annoying early in the film Mr. Clingy, Mr. eveything is too nice. He does a good job transitioning to a more likeable, normal character later in the film.

There were a few good hommages to SNL and How I Met Your Mother (in the man cave, Stewart was frequently seen in front of Marshall amps). Funny, fake movie critic conversations. This is a pop culture / cinema literate film.

At almost 2 hours, the film is just about the right lenght. Technically, surround sound was well used. There were a couple of bad edits where reaction shots were cut off early or changed too quickly. Shots were good and steady, no stupid random handheld camera movement. Overall, nicely done. The director, John Hamburg, has done mostly television; however this effort is very nicely done way better than those credentials.

The movie is definately rated R, and is not for younger viewers. There is no nudity in this film. The R rating is for strong language and explict discussions about sex. No violence, unless you count Lou Ferrigno putting Jason Segel in a sleeper hold. The jokes are crude.

The DVD is packed with some nice bonus features. There is a commentary track with Jason Segel, Paul Rudd, and John Hamburg (I can only imagine that is very funny).

Three deleted scenes that gratefully were left out of the movie (a rugby game, gay bowling, and groomsmen photo session) they were bad.

Extended scenes were actually really great Rush fans, there is an extended version of the concert footage that is excellent; the discussion at ladies night is longer and cruder; the engagement dinner at the Chinese restaurant Stewart talks about his job; Tuxedo shopping goes on a bit longer (not so good); Peter and Stewart hugging in front of the fountain gets another story thread added; and additional conversation at the wedding about gifts.

Extras a bunch of short clips that were in the film, but pushing the joke a lot further a combination of extended scenes and out takes. Best watched long after seeing the movie, they kind of overplay the jokes.

A making of featurette forgettable.

A good funny movie. There are moments when Peter made me feel uncomfortable with his stupid comments, he says things that he regrets or says without thinking. But overall, the jokes work well.

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I think the previews of this movie made it seem better than it really is.

I expected more laughs out of it, but instead got BASICALLY the same scene at least 10 times.

Here's the gist:

A couple gets engaged, and the groom-to-be has trouble finding a best man because for about his entire life ALL his friends have been women. Desperate to find a group of guy friends to call his own ;P he gets into a few "man-dates" before FINALLY finding a guy that seems to have potential "bromance" material. The groom-to-be and this guy soon become the best of friends, but eventually this "bromance" gets to be a bit too much for his fiance to handle, and a conflict breaks out between the two friends.

While I wish this movie had more to the storyline, my boyfriend and I did get a few good laughs out of it, but this isn't a movie that I'd/we'd watch a second time in a row without at least a six months to a year time interval since the last time I/we saw it.

Want I Love You, Man (2009) Discount?

When `I Love You, Man' first came out I rushed to the theater with my then best friend to see it. We had the type of relationship that was very rare I think; a bond that was unlike any I had with anyone else and, to be honest, one I never want to have again (the closer you are the harder they hurt you). Anyways, I'm not trying to be a downer, and I know that no one wants to hear this, but the reason I bring it up is this; when I left the theater that day I really, really loved this movie. I was ready to give it a five-star blazing review. Now that my then best friend and I are no longer speaking to one another I began to wonder if my adoration of this film was blinded love based on a personal connection I had with the subject matter.

It wasn't.

So that is why I mention my god-awful story of betrayed friendship, because in the end `I Love You, Man' still holds up, regardless of you current situation. It is genuine, charming, authentic, original and very, very funny.

The film tells of Peter Klaven; the `girlfriend guy'. He never really had steady friendships because he's not like most men. He's sweet and sensitive and emotional and caring and so he has a great track record with women, but when it comes down to selecting his bridal party (a guy that perfect can never stay single for long) he realizes that he has no friends. So, he embarks on a quest to find a best man, and that is when he runs into Sydney Fife; the complete opposite of Peter. He is crude and abrasive and a total womanizer and comfortable bachelor, but he possesses the same genuineness that Peter has. Each man compliments the other, helping them edge out their own personalities and become more complete individuals.

Why is writing this review making me so depressed?

Anyways, the film is littered with very funny scenes and a lot of well placed humor, but the heart of this film takes a tenderer and even more serious tone of true friendship and that act of finding oneself for the first time. The acting is very good all across the board, especially for this type of feature, but no one does as good a job at really reaching the audience as Paul Rudd. Rudd is flawless here, really grabbing hold of the awkwardness of making friends, of being yourself while constantly trying to impress another person. I know exactly what it's like to call up someone you don't really know but want to get to know (on a friendly level) and find yourself stammering through the most painfully awkward voice mail you've ever left.

I'm telling you; he really is OSCAR worthy here, and that is not something you say very often about performances in this genre of film.

Everything in this film feels so genuine because it is all so believable. I remember looking at my then best friend throughout the film smiling and nudging him, saying "this is so us" and it was; yet sadly it wasn't.

Friendship, and by that I mean TRUE FRIENDSHIP is a rarity today, and I'm thankful that someone finally broke the male bonding stereotype by making a film that is a true testament to the need for real friendship. This is a very smart film that mixes the funny with the heart without ever overdoing it and without ever straying from its objective. With a slew of nicely placed supporting performances (and a scene stealer by Andy Samberg), `I Love You, Man' is the complete package that will make you laugh and smile and, if you're me, cry.

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