It’s Complicated: Old People Love…Yikes

Nothing says “ring in the holiday season” like watching the movie equivalent of your teenage worst nightmare – realizing that your parents have a sex life *shudders*.  Granted, in the case of It’s Complicated it would be watching your divorced-for-ten-years parents’ sex lives, who also happen to be seriously old, but trauma is trauma – you get the picture.

Meryl Streep plays Jane, an impossibly perfect domestic goddess, divorcee and mother of three with phenomenal taste and a successful bakery business to boot. Jane may have amassed beautiful things in her cozy Santa Barbara surroundings (at times you feel like you’re watching a Crate & Barrel catalog come to life), but she is still lonely and melancholy as she enters the twilight of her life. That’s probably because Jake, her ex-husband (played by Alec Baldwin) decided to trade her in for a younger, hotter model (literally) in the form of his second wife Agness (played by Lake Bell). The moment Agness and her flawless abs come waltzing onto the screen we realize that we have met the enemy, and she’s not only hot she’s young. Figures.

While in New York for their youngest son Luke’s (played by Hunter Parrish) college graduation, Jane and Jake get involved in an unexpected (and alcohol-fueled) romantic tryst after a chance run in at a bar. While Jake is amused by their encounter, Jane is horrified to find herself in the “other woman” role. Add to that scenario the fact that Jane has begun dating the sweet and unassuming architect of her dream kitchen, Adam (played by Steve Martin) and Agness wants to have a baby with Baldwin’s character, and the “complicated” part becomes fairly obvious. Still, Jake and Jane continue their affair after they return home, though no one seems the wiser – no one except Streep’s astute (and visibly uncomfortable) soon to be son-in-law Harley, played by the lovable John Krasinski.

Soon Jane is faced with a choice between two very different male suitors, her immature yet disarming ex-husband or her solid and somewhat nerdy architect beau. Helping her navigate through the mess are Jane’s upscale, post-menopausal friends, (picture a book club of chortling women) led by Rita Wilson. Despite the complicated and arguably immoral nature of Jane and Jake’s rekindled romance, the audience can’t help but root for them anyway. Their characters are faced with the question “Can love exist after divorce?”  Maybe, but most likely the messy aftermath would lend itself to a “maybe not” answer. Either way, it brings the color back into their cheeks and makes for some sneaky on-screen moments.

It is every scorned or discarded woman’s fantasy, albeit an implausible one, to be in Jane’s shoes, but Streep manages to be more charming than vengeful. She would have stolen the screen from her fellow actors if it hadn’t been for Alec Baldwin’s stellar comic timing – if you like him on 30 Rock you’ll appreciate him in this film. Of course, John Krasinski never disappoints either, and I was happy to see Steve Martin play less of a bumbling cliché than he usually does in most of his stock family film roles. The film’s writer and director Nancy Meyers, known for her previous and similarly themed work like “Something’s Gotta Give” and “What Women Want” caters to a certain obvious demographic (which I am most certainly not a part of), however even those not in her target audience can probably appreciate the movie’s sharp dialogue and humor. I’d love to say that the borderline-geriatric physiques of Streep and Baldwin are not only still attractive but also kept under wraps the entire time, but there are a few unavoidable cringe-worthy moments. Even still, in a holiday movie season filled with sweeping digital masterpieces, sometimes a little reality and unapologetic imperfection are a welcome change.

Grade: B

For Additional Poptimal reviews of It’s Complicated check out It’s Complicated: Just Misses the Mark by Trisha Huntsman