Going The Distance (2010)

Going The Distance is a victim of its time and circumstance.
I would not hold it against you, if you said that this looked like a horrible prospect. We are in the midst of a sea of bawdy romcoms like Love and Other Drugs *spits*.  Films that feature dirty jokes and graphic sex almost with no emotional context.
This film's timing couldn't have been worse because I think it's alright but it's far and above any Katherine Heigl vehicle.
But maybe that's cos I like Drew Barrymore and Justin Long. I like them in their own movies, so them coming together to be a couple is a lovely thought to me.  The fact they had their own on-off relationship just must have made it easier from them.
Here the crux of the film is that this couple have trouble with their long distance relationship and can only see each other every 3months or so and how do you deal with that. Now like I say, I think these two leads are perfectly likable and have a real transparent affection for one another and I don't think this film would have left the runway, if they didn't. It's success or failure is squarely on their shoulders but they aquit themselves fine but more than that when the film delivers mushy lines like 'I love you' or 'I miss you so much I could cry',  you...  kinda buy it; you at least let it off since it's built up a bank of goodwill with you.
Another thing these movies trade on is dependable comedy actors for the background like Kristen Schaal, Jason Sudekis, Christina Applegate to name a few.  Now I don't mind this so much, I'm sure I've even watched a few film just based in the promise of these sort of appearances by great tv comedians but now I'm more annoyed that they should have their own movies. I'm secretly looking forward to seeing Sudekis in Hall Pass but we'll cross that bridge soon enough...
As much as I love swears and bad taste jokes, this film gets a bit salty at times and if I was being picky, it doesn't seems entirely necessary.
So I'm not saying that it's amazing or the best of anything but the romcom has always been the most dreary of genres generally; I won't say they're all bad and some are some of my favorite films but it's a pleasant bit of candy floss,  where no one kills a live squid and it reminds you 'gah, life's alright most of the time, yeah?'...


I watched Going The Distance (2010) on DVD, via LoveFilm.
My 2011 in Movies will return with Scum (1979) ...