Love and Other Drugs

Jake Gylenhaal and Anne Hathaway light up the screen.

Technically speaking, Love and Other Drugs shouldn't work. The script meanders and rambles--not seeming to have any point or purpose. Jamie and Maggie argue and bicker, letting their insecurities get the best of them. The story isn't really about the relationship but about the two characters getting over their shortcomings and faults. The relationship just happens to be there.

But, surprisingly, it does work. The reasoning for this is the electric chemistry between Jake Gylenhaal and Anne Hathaway. Even in a petty romantic-comedy, Hathaway is incredible on screen. She completely fulfills Maggie Murdock to the point where we believe she is real. Everything about her is as tortured and beautiful as her character. Gylenhaal. does a great job playing the breezy Viagara sales rep. The way he carries himself--his posture and mannerisms, the way he sits and the way he stares--fill the tiny little details that make him loveable. The two of them on the screen are something that makes you laugh, smile, and gives you an excellent break from reality for two hours.

The other way Love and Other Drugs somehow works is that it is never boring. It's a movie that constantly entertains and stimulates. The characters it presents are so real and well-groomed (as far as development is concerned--though they are all very good looking people) that we are willing to sit and pay attention. This either shows the filmmakers' talents as entertainers or our willingness to suspend our disbelief. Either way, it's worth a view.