Crazy, Stupid, Love opened in July 2011 and earned about 84 million domestically and about 145 million worldwide. It stars Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Julianne Moore, Emma Stone, Marisa Tomei, and Kevin Bacon. Steve Carell plays Cal who thinks he has the perfect marriage until his wife Emily played by Julianne Moore tells him she wants a divorce. Cal meets Jacob played by Ryan Gosling who is a ladies man and teaches Cal how to be more like him. Since this is a romantic comedy, of course chaos ensues especially when Jacob meets Hannah played by Emma Stone who catches his eye.

I enjoyed Crazy, Stupid, Love a lot. It is a refreshing romantic comedy drama. It may not be as refreshing now since it’s been almost twelve years since it came out but it still felt refreshing. The cast is superb. Steve Carell has proven himself in many different projects. When this movie came out his most iconic role was playing Michael Scott in the hit TV show The Office. He had memorable supporting roles in Bruce Almighty and Anchorman before headlining the sequel to Bruce Almighty, Evan Almighty. He also starred in Get Smart. In Crazy, Stupid, Love Steve Carell was much more serious. Even the humor in the film for his character was toned down a bit compared to his other roles in comedies. It was refreshing to see a different side to Steve Carell. I have not seen the movies or television projects where Steve Carell showed other sides. I have only really seen the projects where he plays similar characters to Jim Carey and Will Ferrell. Ryan Gosling is a great actor, and he really played the ladies man role well. Whereas sometimes that type of character is meant to come across as the jerk, Ryan Gosling was able to make Jacob likeable even while womanizing. There was some added depth to the character which was a nice surprise. Julianne Moore and Emma Stone both play their characters well. They have great chemistry with Steve Carell and Ryan Gosling respectively.

The movie has several plotlines which all come to a head toward the end. Whereas sometimes films introduce plotlines and then forget about them halfway through, this film sees everything through. This movie has some twists and turns, and I was truly surprised which added to my enjoyment of the movie. I always like when I don’t see a twist coming. These days its hard especially when you watch a lot of movies and television.

Crazy, Stupid, Love is a refreshing romantic comedy drama that I highly recommend to anyone who is looking watch something that is a bit different than the standard romance movies. It has a stellar cast and some great twists and turns. It is very enjoyable.