The Switch (2010)

Directed by: Josh Gordon and Will Speck

Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Jeff Goldblum, Juliette Lewis, Thomas Robinson and Patrick Wilson

Rated: PG-13

Genre: Romantic Comedy, Drama

Wally Mars is shocked by the news that his best friend, Kassie, has decided to have a baby on her own. Having had little luck in relationships, she has realized her biological clock is ticking and has decided to take matters into her own hands. Unable to admit his true feelings for Kassie, Wally gets blackout drunk at the party she has to celebrate her insemination. Kassie moves back home to have help raising her child, leaving Wally in New York. Seven years later, she returns, and Wally comes to the realization that he very well could be the father of Kassie’s son, Sebastian.

The plot is fairly original, even if, in places, it is gross. It mixes the best friend’s unrealized love, a drunken mistake, and a love triangle into something a little fresher than we’re used to. It is still a formulaic romantic comedy, following the same path they all do – everything going great, big bump that breaks up the couple, and climactic ending – but at least the story is good enough that it doesn’t really matter.

The cast is great. If there’s one thing that Jennifer Aniston knows how to do, it’s comedy – even if she’s often the straight woman to everyone else’s quirks. She’s believable as a woman unlucky in love and she plays a great mother. Jason Bateman is hilarious, bringing all of Wally’s neuroses to life and making him sympathetic despite what the audience knows he has done. Jeff Goldblum and Juliette Lewis are fun as the best friends of Wally and Kassie respectively. Patrick Wilson probably had the least to work with, and his character was boring, but I think that was the point. He’s bland, he talks too much, and he’s in the way of Wally and Kassie’s potential love.

The story managed to combine comedy and drama very well. I could laugh along with the silly things like sperm shaped confetti, pretty much anything coming out of Jeff Goldblum or Juliette Lewis’s mouths, and the neurotic tendencies of both Wally and Sebastian. There are also very touching moments, such as Wally and Sebastian’s bonding time, Sebastian’s explanation for his picture frame collection, and the moment he and Wally are ripped apart. It could have just been my hormones, but I was almost crying in a couple of these scenes. Bateman and Thomas Robinson (Sebastian) have a great chemistry.

Overall, I thought it was a cute flick with a nice balance of comedy, romance, and drama. The plot is something we haven’t seen before and the cast really brings it to life.

7/10