I stopped going to see rom coms in theaters awhile ago-probably near the end of Julia Roberts’ reign and the beginning of Matthew McConaughey’s before he received accolades for being a REAL ACTOR! I probably would not have seen Man Up if it didn’t star Simon Pegg and Lake Bell, whom I loved in Surface (In a World… is in my queue). I don’t think that there is a person on the planet who doesn’t love Simon Pegg if familiar with his work.
Man Up is about a 34 year old woman who would prefer to watch movies alone than go on disastrous blind dates, but her family encourages her not to give up. Shenanigans ensue, and she ends up on a date with a soon-to-be-divorced 40 year old. Man Up follows well-worn romantic comedy tropes such as they get along fantastically until something is discovered then they seem to be on the verge of nothing working out, then they almost realize that they are perfect for each other, get separated then desperately and passionately reunite to proclaim their love for each other even though they have only known the other person for less than 24 hours.
Man Up’s success depends on the costars’ chemistry and innate goofy likability. Man Up improves as it progresses. The fact that Man Up’s main characters are hot psychological messes who would rather quote movies and dance to 80s hits keeps the genre fresh and grounded in reality. Pegg’s character is dealing with a particularly dreadful situation involving the magnificent Olivia Williams, and Man Up does a clever twist on The Usual Suspects that ends with well-earned physical comedic denouement.
Only one thing stuck in my craw. Man Up constantly mentioned Pgg’s character’s career, but it isn’t until late in the movie that we discover that Bell is some of journalist. Man Up is a rom com so to expect that a rom com would think that a woman needs characteristics other than single is ridiculous.
If you don’t like rom coms, I would still avoid Man Up, but if you like or liked them, then Man Up will make you laugh after awhile.