The story centres around two long time best friends, Debbie (Reese Witherspoon) and Peter (Aston Kutcher) who are polar opposites of each other in every way. Debbie is the typical basket-case single mother who loves nothing more than her strict routine with her son, whilst Peter is an emotionally unavailable playboy who loves nothing more than danger and spontaneity – you can tell this because he rents a Porsche!
They both even live on the opposite sides of the country. So when Debbie has to travel to New York to finish her degree in some vague businessy thing, Peter, keen to show he can be reliable, offers to babysit her son in Los Angeles. What ensues is your classic role reversals as Peter learns to love the routine whilst Debbie takes risks and meets new people. Both discover things about themselves but also about each other as they find secrets they had kept hidden in their respective homes.
What shines the most in this film is the protagonists’ relationships with the brilliant ensemble cast. Zoe Chao, Steve Zhan and Tig Notaro offer great comic relief for when you start actually thinking about the plot.Through terrible perpetuated jokes, such as everyone finding it embarrassing that Debbie doesn’t have a four-wheeled suitcase (“they’re called wheelers”), these characters keep the movie feeling goofy. It is this goofiness that stops the film from just being bad.
Naturally then, my main criticism of this film is when, at the end, in the obligatory airport scene, the tone suddenly becomes serious as Debbie and Peter have this clunky argument that is immediately resolved. If you’re going to have this tense altercation which doesn’t lead to any barriers or create any friction, why have it at all? A scene where they meet and have a passionate but straightforward confession of love for each other whilst side characters make some silly gag about how she now has a four-wheeled suitcase would have been so much better.
So should you watch this movie? Yes! Watch it for the secretly satisfying goofs, the hilarious use of split screen, the telegraphed clichés and that happy Hollywood ending. If you’re like me and are a bit burnt out on gritty realism, watch this and have fun.