Love. It’s something we’ve all faced or explored at one time or another in our lives. But when it’s all said and done, some of us are left questioning, “What do I do? How am I supposed to live being single after being in a relationship for so long”? This is the overarching theme of the film How to Be Single, a very cookie cutter rom-com starring Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Leslie Mann, and Alison Brie.
In How to Be Single, Alice (Dakota Johnson) decides to go on a break with her fiancé Josh (Nicholas Braun) in order to help “find herself” in her search for a paralegal career in New York City. However, by the time she has decided to end the break, he has already moved on to another woman. Alice joins a group of single women, her older sister Meg (Leslie Mann) who struggles with the idea of progressing in her career or settling down in life, her law firm colleague Robin (Rebel Wilson) who shamelessly throws herself at any man who will let her, and uptight romantic Lucy (Alison Brie) who is constantly searching for the perfect man. Between one-night stands and flirtatious text messaging, these four women will all learn how to navigate being single in a city that is constantly changing its definition of the word “love”.
Now going into this film, I did not hold any high expectations given what the film content is. The film definitely achieves its purpose as the typical rom-com for a niche crowd. However the story is extremely “been there done that”, and the film in general doesn’t contain anything special that we all haven’t seen before. Yes, there are a few laugh out loud moments, but nothing that truly stands out or that is memorable in ones movie going experience. The performances altogether were also very blasé, and not one person had a standout moment.
While the film serves its purpose, it doesn’t stand against any of the rom-coms that have come before it. While Hollywood has been lacking when it comes to originality as of late, this film really has none at all whatsoever. It’ll be a fun night out for the ladies who can’t find anything else they want to see in the theater, but I definitely don’t see it as being someone’s first choice. But who knows, maybe someone is in the market for information on how to be single.
Grade: C–
