What If
2/4
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Zoe Kazan, Adam Driver, Megan Park, Mackenzie Davis, Rafe Spall
Rated PG-13 for Sexual Content, including References Throughout, Partial Nudity and Language
"What If" is a romantic comedy, but it fails in two key categories: it's not romantic and it's not all that funny. There are a few sparks of each, but for the most part it doesn't work.
Wallace (Radcliffe) is a guy who lives in his grandmother's attic and has a job writing technical manuals. He was in medical school but dropped out. His last relationship ended very badly, and a year later he's still really cynical about love. Then at a party, he meets Chantry (Kazan), and hits it off magically with her. But of course she's been dating Ben (Spall) for five years. Just his luck. Still, they agree to just be friends. Guess how well that turns out.
"What If" is "When Harry Met Sally" for the Millenial generation. That means it asks whether or not a guy and a girl can remain friends without romance getting in the way (and that's all it asks). It also means quirky characters and heavy doses of cynicism and angst. Those last two characteristics are killer. They're meant to make it more appealing to people my age, but it causes this would-be romantic comedy to become a little grim rather than light and frothy like the other entries in the genre.
Since hanging up the cape as Harry Potter three years ago, Daniel Radcliffe has been trying to avoid becoming another actor whose star fades once the franchise they were most famous for ties up (a fate that is in store for Taylor Lautner but Robert Pattinson has thus far managed to avoid, despite a bad reputation as an actor...he must have a very good agent). He certainly has the talent to do it. Radcliffe shines as the lead in this film, and balances cynicism and likability in a way that director Michael Dowse cannot. Radcliffe knows what this movie is trying to be and delivers. He also understands the concept of comic timing, which he hasn't been able to show before. Less impressive is Zoe Kazan. She's not bad. Just bland. She lacks charisma and charm, something that her co-star has. The film could still work if Radcliffe and Kazan had chemistry, but they don't. There's no spark between them, so if there was any reason to care about anyone in this movie, it's because of Daniel Radcliffe.
The supporting characters aren't much better. Adam Driver, who is soon to be famous for playing a role in the upcoming "Star Wars" movie, plays Wallace's obligatory sexually successful best friend Allan. He's meant to add some color and humor to the film, but he's actually pretty boring. Megan Park (as Chantry's sister who has the hots for Wallace) and Mackenzie Davis (as Allan's girlfriend Nicole) do amazing jobs of blending into the background.
If Michael Dowse's previous credit, the hockey comedy "Goon," is anything to go by, at least some of the film's failures have to do with him. He doesn't have a good idea on how to nurture any kind of chemistry between actors, which sinks the film. It also suffers from the need to be "indie." The dialogue and the performances are too "natural," and the film isn't able to cast a spell that puts a song in our hearts and makes us come out smiling. If there's any genre that needs a bit of fantasy to work, it's the romance.
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Zoe Kazan, Adam Driver, Megan Park, Mackenzie Davis, Rafe Spall
Rated PG-13 for Sexual Content, including References Throughout, Partial Nudity and Language
"What If" is a romantic comedy, but it fails in two key categories: it's not romantic and it's not all that funny. There are a few sparks of each, but for the most part it doesn't work.
Wallace (Radcliffe) is a guy who lives in his grandmother's attic and has a job writing technical manuals. He was in medical school but dropped out. His last relationship ended very badly, and a year later he's still really cynical about love. Then at a party, he meets Chantry (Kazan), and hits it off magically with her. But of course she's been dating Ben (Spall) for five years. Just his luck. Still, they agree to just be friends. Guess how well that turns out.
"What If" is "When Harry Met Sally" for the Millenial generation. That means it asks whether or not a guy and a girl can remain friends without romance getting in the way (and that's all it asks). It also means quirky characters and heavy doses of cynicism and angst. Those last two characteristics are killer. They're meant to make it more appealing to people my age, but it causes this would-be romantic comedy to become a little grim rather than light and frothy like the other entries in the genre.
Since hanging up the cape as Harry Potter three years ago, Daniel Radcliffe has been trying to avoid becoming another actor whose star fades once the franchise they were most famous for ties up (a fate that is in store for Taylor Lautner but Robert Pattinson has thus far managed to avoid, despite a bad reputation as an actor...he must have a very good agent). He certainly has the talent to do it. Radcliffe shines as the lead in this film, and balances cynicism and likability in a way that director Michael Dowse cannot. Radcliffe knows what this movie is trying to be and delivers. He also understands the concept of comic timing, which he hasn't been able to show before. Less impressive is Zoe Kazan. She's not bad. Just bland. She lacks charisma and charm, something that her co-star has. The film could still work if Radcliffe and Kazan had chemistry, but they don't. There's no spark between them, so if there was any reason to care about anyone in this movie, it's because of Daniel Radcliffe.
The supporting characters aren't much better. Adam Driver, who is soon to be famous for playing a role in the upcoming "Star Wars" movie, plays Wallace's obligatory sexually successful best friend Allan. He's meant to add some color and humor to the film, but he's actually pretty boring. Megan Park (as Chantry's sister who has the hots for Wallace) and Mackenzie Davis (as Allan's girlfriend Nicole) do amazing jobs of blending into the background.
If Michael Dowse's previous credit, the hockey comedy "Goon," is anything to go by, at least some of the film's failures have to do with him. He doesn't have a good idea on how to nurture any kind of chemistry between actors, which sinks the film. It also suffers from the need to be "indie." The dialogue and the performances are too "natural," and the film isn't able to cast a spell that puts a song in our hearts and makes us come out smiling. If there's any genre that needs a bit of fantasy to work, it's the romance.
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