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It'd probably be easy to write I Love You Man off as another Apatow comedy, what with its actualization of the latent theme of "bromance" in all the oeuvre. But you'll notice something funny: no one within I Love You Man grows up, or really even needs to, the main gal isn't an annoying nag, and Judd Apatow had absolutely nothing to do with the production, besides basically crafting Jason Segel for us. On top of that, not only does this movie demonstrate a surprising amount of understanding of girls (even as it doesn't care as much about its female characters as it does for its male protagonists), it provides us with a main character who legitimately respects and understands the women in his life. For him, the bro squads of Knocked Up and The Forty Year Old Virgin are the foreign species.
I Love You Man tells the story of Peter Klaven, succesful in love and semi-succesful in work, but somewhat devoid in the male companionship department. When he and his girlfriend (Rashida Jones, sweet and understanding throughout the whole film) decide to tie the knot, he embarks on an odyssey of man-dates to try and find himself a best man. After nearly giving up his quest, he stumbles upon Sydney Fife (Jason Segel) at an open house. Sydney is a slacker/philosphizer/investor in the Owen Wilson mold, and he helps the uptight Peter get in touch with his inner leprechaun, and in turn Peter helps him sort through his feelings towards women (this second part is more of an uber-sub-plot, but it helps to flesh out the character: sure he's fun and laid back, but he's flawed in his own turn, too. It saves him from being A Manic Pixie Dream Boy).
The movie has a lot going for it that doesn't come through in a plot description. Paul Rudd is a revelation. He's dweeby and awkward without ever seeming broken down or pathetic. He's a semi-functional human being who just happens to be poorly socialized with his fellow men. And his girliness is played occasionally for giggles, but like a lot of this comedy team's work, it's ultimately what makes these characters so interesting. In the words of the movie itself, "Chocolat really is delightful."
Andy Samberg as Rudd's gay brother is a unique coemdy creation: a gay character who isn't a limp wristed stereotype. I have a theory that Samberg exists in this movie purely to prove how un-homophobic the movie is. In that case, he's unneccesary. Despite the seemingly giggle-inducing-in-a-homophobic-way title, the movie never seems like the giggles come from a place of fear. It's all love, baby.
But the thing that causes this movie to really excede its setup is Jason Segel. If Sydney were played by Owen Wilson, or really any other actor than Segel, he'd be an annoying bro who spouts faux-wisdom to justify his manwhoring and slackerdom. But as played by Segel, he's an intensely passionate, interesting, sincere and sensitive character that seems legitimately sweet even while screaming at people and making toasts about the need for more "blowies" in a relationship.
I really, really love the way comedy is moving within this group. This is a very adult (and not just in the sense of its over-use of the f--- word) film, about the problems of trying to make friends once you're out of college and of maintaining your passion for life as time passes. It's bawdy and hilarious, and sweet and intelligent. A major thread in the reviews seems to be that Segel and Rudd are exceeding the material they're given. That's not quite it. The whole point of this new vein of comedy is that it's the human relationships and feelings that make these movies great. We don't care about the Forty Year Old Virgin because we desperately want to see him get deflowered; we care because we like seeing Steve Carrell fall in love and form new friendships. Superbad doesn't work because of the quest for booze and the party scenes, it works because we buy into these characters life story (or it doesn't work because we don't buy in, but either way the success of the film is dependant upon the characters). It's why I like the first half of Pineapple Express much better than the second; the first half is all about interesting, engaging characters going through life, and the second half is about explosions. I Love You Man doesn't suceed simply because of Rudd and Segel, but the whole notion of the movie is dependant upon their careful craftings of the characters of Sydney and Peter. And it works damn well.
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