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ABOUT A BOY
Stars:
Hugh Grant, Toni Colette, Nicolus Hoult, Rachel Weisz
Score: 7.5/10 |
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"Sometimes two isn't enough, you need backup". Films seem to reflect the same concept many people hold - that for your life to have any meaning you have to get married. But "special someones" can come in many packages. And the danger of making one person your entire world is that if they let you down, you often find it hard to pick yourself back up.
Will never had this problem. He keeps everyone at a distance. He beleives one man can be an island. Why not? He's got his espresso, no need to work, tv, dvd, cd, all the modern conveniences. Quite self indulgent. An inheritance has left him with a rather aimless and monotonous life, but he's comfortable with it. He can depend on it. He loves dating, but doesn't want all the strings attatched. He gets an idea that single mothers could be an untapped target so he joins a single parents club and basically lies about being a father in order to meet chicks. Through a series of events that almost result in a tragedy, he befriends a 12 year old boy named Marcus. Marcus actually has alot in common with Will. While Will chooses to isolate himself from others, Marcus IS isolated by others. His mother is his only friend, because he's the kid at school that others think is a weirdo. He forcibly becomes friends with Will hoping he'll marry his mother and pull her out of her depression. She cries every morning and doesn't know anything going on in her son's life...because she's so consumed with her own pain that she doesn't even notice his. We can't always depend on one person to give us our happiness, but we can always count on them hurting us. |
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Will perceives himself as a screwup with no values or morals (and he has no qualms about lliving up to that expectation), but this newfound friendship makes him realize that maybe he could actually be a good friend, or a good father. That there are qualities in him that he himself never knew simply because he was never put to the test and allowed himself to really care about others. Will meets a woman named Rachel that he likes...I mean really likes. Before he dated without conscience, breaking it off before it got too serious..but now he wants more. You wonder if it's the new age of technology where people are becoming more used to being cut off from the outside world or the dependency of others. Or perhaps it could relate to his childhood and relationship with his parents. Or maybe he's just that guy who never grew up. The movie is full of funny moments, watching Marcus struggle with his own life and trying to help with his mother and just be a normal kid. Will helps him realize that people cannot depend on others to give them happiness, they have to find it on their own. One scene he says, "I've created a monster...or...maybe the monster has created me." Through a network of relationships we often find ourselves the most fulfilled. What is our purpose in life? |
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Click here to buy movie posters! |
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Maybe it isn't to have an interesting job or perfect spouse and family, it's finding ourself through the relationships we have with others. Basically the story boils down to something that might have happened in Will's past to make him into a person who would rather not seek relationships with people except family (because he had to). This was safe, he didn't get hurt or depressed. He relied on himself to make himself happy. In the end is a nice scene where Will closes his eyes and loses himself in a moment, where he's shed his shallow facade and seems to become liberated. Because he's found happiness in caring, and the only way you can help others is to truly care about them. Don't be put off by this review, it's not a "chick flick"..i think guys will really relate to this character. Hugh Grant does a good job at playing a guy who is supposed to be unlikable. All too often I felt the movie was trying to push a soundtrack so I was a bit put off by that. Best film of the year? Nah, but it was a good yarn. |
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