I really feel bad about admitting that I like this film -- part of me is so sick and tired of the fraternity of Judd Apatow films. I realize that Apatow had nothing to do with this film but it definitely fits into his little cinematic universe of inhabited by half-men, half-children. It's always seemed odd to me how much we enjoy celebrating male characters with sad, pathetic Peter Pan complexes. Is it really so laudable to refuse to grow up and take responsibility? Think, for example, about Dustin Hoffman's character, Benjamin, in The Graduate. Say what you want about cultural revolutions, generational differences, etc. At its core, The Graduate is a film about a guy who refuses to take responsibility for his actions, who refuses to act like an adult. Sure, the world might suck but moping around the swimming pool all day doesn't make it suck any less. As many of my film students have commented: I don't understand what the hell is his problem.


So, now we have films like I Love You, Man. Maybe the one interesting or different aspect about this film is the focus is not on the guy who refuses to grow up but on the guy who needs to loosen up and discover his inner man-child ... hmmm, isn't that the premise of Hook?


Again, I think this is a perfectly fun film and perhaps if it hadn't been for all those Apatow films that came before it I would enjoy it much more. 

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