A return to favorites

I've had company this weekend, and one of the things we always end up doing is rewatching favorite movies. We tend to have very similar tastes most of the time, so it's a trip to sit and giggle or sigh over our favorite parts without being self-conscious about it.

Our choices ended up being The Avengers and Crazy Stupid Love.

The Avengers happened because it wasn't just us, it was us and my husband and my kids, so something everybody was going to enjoy. I'm not a comics girl, but I am a Joss Whedon fan and the movie has always been a pleasure for me, even if it's supposedly just another superhero film. The characters aren't black and white, it never forgets the humor, and the performances are fun. A win, all around.

Then came Crazy Stupid Love. I saw it when I came out in the theater with my friend who visited this weekend, and she hasn't seen it since, so the choice was easy. I cannot even begin to describe how much I love this movie. The performances by Carell and Gosling are subtle and so nuanced, they manage to anchor the film in reality without losing the charm or humor in the script. Each relationship has something true to say about love, whether it works or not. And that moment where Kevin Bacon shows up at the house and Ryan Gosling hears who he is? Still one of my absolute favorites ever. Because look at it. Regardless of the fact that Cal has just told him off and said some really nasty things about him, Jacob leaps to attack for him because of their friendship anyway. It's that, "Okay, I'm going to watch your back no matter what" attitude that makes him such a wonderful character for me.