Comments on: Date Night – Going the Distance

By: tamara

tamara — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 23:36:34 +0000

Don’t get me wrong, I am in no way defending either Jennifer. Neither of them, esp. JLo, is a particularly good actress. They just keep throwing JLo is these C level rom-coms, and you’re right, it is quite insulting. I never even heard of ‘The Back-Up Plan’ until I saw it at Redbox. She has made more money from doing several things, none particularly well, than anyone I can think of. I think Drew tries to make (literally, not just star in) relatable movies in this genre, such as ‘He’s Just Not That Into You,’ which, while not a new concept, and even with the inclusion of “megastars” Ben Affleck & Jennifer Aniston (in one of her better roles) gave us main characters that could have been us or our friends (except that they were all Caucasian, but I digress.)

I just wanted clarification on the “real people” statement. I see where you’re coming from now. I totally agree with you re: Drew currently being recognized more for her career than her personal life (btw, I think she & Justin broke up prior to making the movie, but remain friends. Not that I pay attention to that kind of stuff.)

By: Tim Adkins

Tim Adkins — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 16:37:29 +0000

@tamara: I think the difference between Drew Barrymore and the two Jennifers is that Drew has managed–despite some pretty long odds–to be more of an actor than she is a celebrity. I think she was fortunate that most of her most scandalous moments occurred before the perpetual information cycle was so…perpetual. In the last 10 years, most of what you hear about her has to do with her work. And not so much with her life. The two Jennifers have not been so fortunate.

That said…that paragraph was meant more as a dig at conventional Hollywood where celebrities get dropped into big budget, assembly line films simply to guarantee name recognition and box office returns. As a result, I think many of those films lack substance. And a good many of them are kinda insulting. They present product-placed scenarios that look more like advertisements than a reflection of real life. (Unlike Going the Distance which felt frighteningly familiar due in large part to the story and the way it was told.) I get that escapism is a primary reason people go to the cinema. But I think the assembly line process too often reduces escapism to absurdities that no one can relate to and that no reasonably intelligent person could possibly enjoy. The two Jennifers were probably very easy targets for trying to discuss such a thing. And maybe using them wasn’t the best rhetorical decision. But that was the intent.

Also…the Liberian Girl and I stumbled onto The Back Up plan just after seeing Going the Distance…and The Back-Up Plan really was insulting. So…she seemed like fair game. Especially given the announcement of the $12 million American Idol deal.

P.S. Thanks for reading.

P.P.S. Thanks for writing.

By: tamara

tamara — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 16:13:52 +0000

I think you gave a pretty good recap of the movie without giving away too much. That being said, I’m slightly confused about these statements:

“We didn’t have to watch Jennifer Aniston pretending she wasn’t Jennifer Aniston. And we didn’t have to watch Jennifer Lopez pretending she was some regular chick worth less than $12 million. We got to see real people–really funny people–doing things that real people do.”

Is Drew Barrymore considered to be a “real person” not worth more than $12 million? Is it any different watching Drew pretending she’s not Drew than it is with Jennifer A.? The people (Drew Barrymore, Justin Long, etc.) are not “real” people in any real context. None of them would be found living next door to you or me. Or are you saying that they are not megastars in the same stratosphere as the Jens? In that case, with the exception of Drew, I guess you’d be right. And since Drew, for all her fortune and fame, spends less time in the tabloids (now) then your typical megastar, I guess she comes across as being more “real” as well. Maybe. A little.

Anyhoo, I may check this out when it hits redbox.

P.S. – I also like how you shared your own LDR situation. Very sweet.