No Strings Attached

Ivan Reitman directs this sexy romantic comedy, starring Ashton Kutcher and  Natalie Portman.  Kutcher plays Adam, a serial monogamist who is just getting over a particularly bad break-up and isn't interested in getting serious with anyone.  Portman plays Emma, a successful doctor who isn't interested in relationships period.  The two meet at different intervals in their lives (at summer camp as young teens, as college students later on, etc.) and keep each other at a distance, despite their obvious mutual attraction.  That all changes when they serendipitously find themselves living in the same city and at each other's disposal.  Adam and Emma form a pact to have an open relationship based solely on sex and unencumbered by emotional ties.  Which is all fine and good until they start feeling something more.  In this utterly predictable story, practically every character is written as a caricature of themselves: Adam (as a charming but goofy stud) and Emma (as a driven and beautiful ice-queen) are familiar stereotypes in the rom-com repertoire.  But somehow the actors pull off making these characters likable.  Kutcher is, in fact, charming as Adam, balancing his usual overgrown frat boy shtick with an unexpected warmth and vulnerability.  And once Emma finally starts letting her guard down - there's a funny scene where a very drunk Emma tells off a couple of Adam's dates - Portman hits her stride and lets loose with a winsome zaniness not seen since her performance in "Garden State".  The other saving grace for this movie is the witty dialogue, with sharp zingers and observations (Greta Gerwig, as one of Emma's roommates, delivers a particularly funny line while the girls are commiserating about their monthly cycles). "No Strings Attached" is fluff in every sense of the word - you can't survive on the sugary substance alone, but it still succeeds in satisfying that sweet tooth craving.

3 out of 5 stars