THEY CAME TOGETHER
US, 2014, 83 minutes, Colour.
Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Bill Hader, Ellie Kemp, Cobie Smolders, Jason Mantzoukas, Michael Ian Black, Christopher Meloni, Ed Helms, Norah Jones, Adam Scott, John Stamos, Michael Murphy, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Michael Shannon, Judge Judy.
Directed by David Wain.
This is a romantic comedy for film buffs rather than those looking for a romantic comedy.
This is a collaboration between Paul Rudd and writer-director, David Wain, with previous collaborations including The 10 Commandments and Role Models.
Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler portray a couple having dinner in a restaurant telling their story to another couple, Bill Hadar and Ellie Kemp. They tell a story of rocky encounters, change of heart, falling in love, hesitations and difficulties, relating to other people, the storming of a wedding ceremony, marriage… And news of a separation. but the film ends with an upbeat note – possibility for starting again.
Fans of Paul Rudd and Amy Polar will enjoy the performances, some serious moments, some comic moments, some romantic moments. Rudd portrays an executive with an expanding candy company who want to buy up surrounding buildings when they propose a new store. Amy Poehler plays an eccentric woman whose life ambition was to open her private candy store, which she does. They encounter one another by accident on the way to a fancy dress party, both as Benjamin Franklin, then discover that are going to the same party, clashing but nevertheless attracted to each other.
Rudd’s company is portrayed as ruthless, with Christopher Meloni in charge, and Michael Ian Black, a smarmy executive who is having an affair with Cobie Smulders, Rudd’s girlfriend to whom is about to propose. Meloni has a very awkward sequence when he is trapped in his costume and has a toilet accident, creating a mess but trying to blame everyone else. Contrary to all expectations, he turns out to be the good guy at the end, fostering private enterprise and supporting Rudd and Poehler.
Rudd has various friends at work, clashes with his younger brother who is out of work and sponging on him but who turns things around. For a moment, it is revealed that Amy Poehler has a son who immediately takes a shine to Rudd as a substitute father.
There are a lot of comic moments, a lot of romantic moments, including a test whether Poehler wearing a Groucho Marx nose and glasses is noticeable or not – and her prospective fiance, Ed Helms, not recognising her at the wedding ceremony.
There are some cameos at the end with Jeffrey Dean Morgan turning up as a former boyfriend and Michael Shannon turning up, sinister as usual, for a fight with Rudd as Poehler’s ex-husband. There are also some cameos by Adam Scott who appeared with Poehler in Parks and Recreation, with John Amos and Norah Jones singing, a recording session with touches of the music video.
There are some amusing lines and situations – and some very corny ones as well. Some outrageous situations, especially with Michael Murphy as Poehler’s Neo Nazi father. Which means that an audience looking for a romantic comedy may well be disappointed not understanding what is going on, but for the fans of the star stars and the writer-director, it is often quite amusing.
