Definitely Maybe (2008)

Didn't Connect With It.

Definitely Maybe is the story of Will Hayes, a man going through a divorce, and his daughter Maya. Maya begs Will to tell her the story of her mother. Will obliges, changing the names of the women in the story so Maya has to guess which is her mother. It is here that the story starts.

I felt disconnected with this film. In the first ten minutes of the film, Maya Hayes talks about thrusting penises more than I have in the last ten years. Her character comes off as a 27 year old woman possessing the body of a ten year old girl. It didn't feel real, or honest. It felt more like the dialog that a young, childless and hip Hollywood writer would write. It felt clueless, and disconnected.

Will Hayes proceeds to tell his daughter his story, which includes his interaction with many women, threesome talk, and numerous scenes filled with sexual tension. This also didn't feel real. As a parent of 2 daughters myself, I just could not fathom the purpose behind this, nor could I see myself discussing threesomes, et al, with my young daughters. It was off center, to say the least.

Another flaw of the film are the many scenes filled with the political escapades of Will Hayes. They came off as forced, occasionally slipping into agenda driven. (A jab at George Bush is taken early on)

Overall, my wife and I were very disappointed with this flick. I wouldn't call it a romantic comedy, simply because the comedy was forced and the romance was almost non-existent.

Some might connect with this film. I don't begrudge you for watching it. I just couldn't connect with it at all. September 21, 2008

No if, ands or maybes; this is definitely a wonderful little film...

I, for one, am smitten with this film. Okay, so sure, it is not `perfect', but honestly, for the sake of this review we will label it as such. I seriously loved every minute of this movie and would watch it again, any place, any time.

The film tells the story of Will Hayes as he tries to explain to his ten-year-old daughter Maya how he met her mother. We find out immediately that Will and his wife are divorcing and he has his daughter for the night. She's curious as to how her parents got together and so Will tells her a story about the three women in his life and tells her that she has to figure out which one is her mother. Maya gets settled into her bed for her `love story mystery' and Will begins his tale of love, life and loss. Will tells of his relationships with Emily, Summer and April. Will and Emily were high school sweethearts who grew apart when Will's aspirations to become President of the United States wedged between them. Summer is the beautiful journalist who's own life goals waged war on her love affair with Will, and April is the spunky idealist who was always too much of a friend to ever become anything more.

Will's story is interesting and engrossing, but it is the beautiful story unfolding off screen between father and daughter that touched me deeply. Sure, the main focus may be on Will's love life, but we are constantly reminded that he is bonding with his daughter, and when Will finally tells Maya the happy ending I dare you to hold back the tears.

`Definitely, Maybe' may suffer in some areas from a clichéd script, but the script never feels tired or boring. It always rises above its own handicaps to create a story worth listening to and worth adoring. The ending is far from expected (thank the lord in heaven) and it is one that makes the entire experience all the more gratifying, especially as young Maya begins to understand the true meaning of happiness.

The acting is also, for the most part, superb. Young Abigail Breslin (Oscar nominated I should add) is not my general cup-of-tea when it comes to child acting. I tend to be more fascinated by the Ronan's and the Fanning's but I must say that her approach to Maya was warm and endearing. The three women in Will's life were all handled wonderfully by Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Weisz and the outstanding Isla Fisher. Banks is perfectly warm, the ideal vision of the high school sweetheart (or the `safe' choice). Weisz is intoxicating, with her come hither stare and her mysterious smile. Fisher is above and beyond amazing as April, always keeping the audience glued to her every movement. She is so charming and sincere that one can't help but fall head over heals in love with her.

I have always found Reynolds rather bland (except for in `The Amityville Horror') and this is really no exception, but his co-stars elevate his performance drastically.

In the end I have to say that this is a delightful film, a wonderful answer back to the romantic comedy of today. It's charming, sweet and moving and will have you feeling warm and fuzzy all over by the time the credits start to roll. Sure, some may not find this as engaging and genuine as I have, but I guaranty you that any father (especially one's with daughters) will find this heartwarming to the very last drop. September 16, 2008

Vanwilder meets dadhood in zany romance !

My biggest difficulty is the continuing Hollywood screwing with 'sex education', as if it would be taught to all grades (kindergarten too) and that Democrats must be as morally corrupt as Bill Clinton. The biz doesn't want to examine abortion, that would be too hard, instead we're shown a morally loose journalist who conveniently has a child out of wedlock. Someday I'd like to see abortion dealt with as a realistic but alternate choice. Perhaps that would raise conversations about pro-life society's "after the fact" condemnation AND denial of financial support to unwed mothers and sex ed.

I actually enjoyed the "boy-slut" observation and comments about alcohol and tobacco abuse. Still, too many cliches ! Make them stop it now !

Was Anne Coulter a screen writer, or perhaps, an advisor ? September 15, 2008

Definitely, a winner

This is a sweet romantic comedy. It's easy to pick out who will win the leading man's heart in the end, but it's still a great movie that's fun to watch. I liked how the ending came together. Glad I bought it. September 14, 2008

Which Woman Is Mom? - a romantic suspense story

My wife and I enjoyed this movie, I have a daughter, now grown, and I loved other women before marrying her mother. This movie tells a story about those 3 women, and the ups and downs of their relationship with him. The girl can't figure out which woman in the story is her mother. But she also wants her father to be happy. This has a nice ending for a romantic like my wife and I, we've were afraid at times the ending would be different. This DVD movie was money well spent, entertaining, happy and sad, but we were not certain who should be cheered for. Let it happen like life does us a time. Breakups can be hard, especially when my child was younger, just 5, she wanted me to be happy too. We both liked this movie. The daughter did well in her part, believeable. September 9, 2008

More reviews at Amazon.com ...