How to Be Single - Welcome to the Party

Good movie + Rebel Wilson = bad movie

I would have enjoyed this film a lot, if Rebel wouldn't have been it. Her character was so annoying that my family and I almost stopped watching the movie. She has the most annoying roles in movies and they still keep casting her. The roles she plays are really one-sided, the recipe is simple: one joke characters, who know how to party and are allowed to say and do anything.

The story line is not too complex, however, for a one-watch-only movie it is not that bad. There were some good puns and I was kind of interested in the ending.

How to Be Single should be named How Not to Be Single. Not that it's material is bad, because it's very good indeed. However, it may give off the wrong impression to its younger audience. Dakota Johnson makes some very rash decisions, not knowing who she wants to be with, and where she wants to be. Her newest, closest chum Rebel Wilson hits life hard. Her opinion of a good night is ending up in a strangers house, having many sexual encounters and not remembering much of them. Leslie Mann is the older sister to Johnson, an independent woman with a younger love- interest rattling her cage. And then there's the weird Alison Brie, the egotistic Anders Holm, and the family man Marlon Wayans Jr. These are characters picked out fresh from the stereotype's pool. Gags are thrown in, coming mainly from the outrageous Wilson (no surprises there). Apart from its misleading title, manages to make us chuckle, if not smile. Most women (and men) out there will fall for the adorable baby that Mann has to briefly look after in a very early, very memorable scene. It will be hard to contain yourselves.

Dakota Johnson plays Alice, a young woman we meet as she "takes a break" (in Friends language) from her college sweetheart in order to discover herself – i.e. sleep with someone else to convince herself she's in love. It backfires and she finds herself alone in New York. That's when she meets Robin (Rebel Wilson), who takes her on an odyssey of booze, clubs, and sofa-surfing. Meanwhile, Alice's sister (Leslie Mann) is trying to conceive via IVF, while resisting the charms of a hunky admirer (Jake Lacy).

There are myriad subplots, each involving variously unattached women and men. Some are affecting (a man grieving for his late wife) and some are misguided (a manic woman breaking down before a group of children at a book reading), but it all amounts to a brisk and enjoyable constellation of familiar rom-com elements – with just a few mild surprises thrown in for good measure.

The film's very title tells us this won't be a serious feminist essay, but as a soft-focused glance at the pariah world of singledom it does the job. At times it's even vaguely complex in its exploration of paradoxical human needs. It's also admirably restrained in its condemnation of sexually-active men. Yes, it's a chocolate box New York and the final message lands like a candy floss hammer, but fair play for populating the narrative with no clear villains.

Dakota Johnson is fine, even if she has the air of a dramatic actor shoehorning herself into comedy. That's no easy thing – De Niro's been trying and failing for decades. Alice is an everywoman, and the humour comes from the situations she finds herself in (e.g. tone-deaf attempts at casual flirtation; awkward parties where her three exes meet). Many of these situations are triggered by BFF Robin. Wilson is used to spectacularly indecent effect, although it's a pity it takes so long for the story to give her any depth beyond hedonism.

Mann's tussle with independence versus commitment would normally be the stuff of entire rom-coms; perhaps its relegation (along with threads) to smaller sub-slices is a tacit acknowledgement that How To Be Single is a greatest hits package rather than something bold or new.

Apparently this movie cost nearly $40m, although it's hard to see where the money went. It's aesthetically limited and stagey and it's no star vehicle. Still, it'll make its money back because it's the safest bet on the post-Valentine's schedule. A determinedly straightforward watch, from top to bottom How To Be Single aims to be a three-star movie and succeeds.

This is a better than average romantic comedy. I gave this one an extra star, because, although it largely followed the rom-com formula, meaning happy endings for most of the characters, it wasn't obvious who was going to end up with who, or otherwise. Rare is the film in this genre that does not telegraph its exact ending at least forty minutes away. Rebel Wilson played to type and was quite amusing. Alison Brie was lovely, and played her neurotic role very well. Dakota Johnson was absolutely adorable. I hope to see more of her in the future. Kudos to Leslie Mann, as well. The New York sets and photography were impressive, and there were no obtrusive directing techniques.

I'll be honest, I was dragged to this movie by a girl friend. I was tired of the rom com genre. I had seen it all before. Ill say this, this movie strips away all those clichés and goes in the opposite direction. What a lovely and funny R rated comedy with a lot of heart. There are so many charming moments that I cannot even explain them all. Rebel Wilson does her usual thing but here she perfects it and brings a certain edge to her performance. Its my favorite performance of hers. Dakota Johnson gives the best performance of her young career and Leslie Mann owns her roll. Its her funniest, saddest, and truest performance to date. Yes Im still talking about a raunchy comedy here. There is more to this movie than you might think. The men in the film are actually better written that most clichéd men in romantic comedies. Finally, the ending is just perfect for those single people out there.I advise seeing this with a friend and not with a significant other. **** out of 5 stars.