Swinging With The Finkels

It Isn't Raunchy
I saw the title of this movie and was kind of thinking I didn't want to watch even though I love Martin Freeman and like Mandy Moore though she does manage to star in duds from time to time. I didn't want to watch yet another raunchy take on a romantic comedy, but I figured neither one of these two actors would get involved in a raunchy movie unless it had something redeeming about it.

I was delighted to see, as the movie progressed, that their is really nothing particularly suggestive or sexual in the film that isn't shown in the trailer. This may disappoint some, but I liked the movie as it was.

It is an exploration of this marriage that has went stale and how the couple tries to revive it through desperate means. It ends up being more serious than funny though it does have its funny moments.

My only nitpick is Mandy Moore. I like her in movies when she isn't supposed to be in love. I don't really buy her as a romantic actress...I actually think she...

Living Vicariously!
The Finkels are in a rut. They've been married 9 years and can't seem to find the desire or passion to please one another anymore. Somewhat conservative Ellie comes up with the idea of swinging, to see if the grass is greener on the other side, so Alvin goes along with it. What happens after are hilarious insights on the low points of marriage that are funny only because they're true. The side characters are equally as entertaining, mimicking someone we either know or have known. Many thoughts are thoughts we've all expressed at one point, some issues are serious, others are mundane. Either way, living vicariously through the Finkels should make you think of your own relationship. The ending was predictable but it was okay because the movie itself was hilarious, quirky, insightful and definitely off the beaten path. I was so surprised by Mandy Moore! I've never really liked much of her work, but thought she played this character wonderfully, she was completely endearing in her role,...

Too bad to finish watching
Quite honestly, I rented this movie purely out of my love for Martin Freeman. It was so stupid and dreadful that I gave up after fifteen minutes. In those fifteen minutes pretty much every stupid cliche of committed heterosexual relationships was invoked and taken for granted. If you're a Freeman fan, try Wild Target with Bill Nighy and Rupert Grint or Nativity! if you haven't seen them yet.

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