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.
