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The story of a young man disillusioned by love who meets a breathtaking young woman at a charity dinner by pretending to be a philanthropist. Turns out that she's engaged to a guy who doesn't like her going on dates. Challenged by the chase, and egged on by his eclectic friends, he feigns a platonic relationship in order to keep seeing her as he tries to conquer her heart
Critic Consensus
Critical reception for Playing It Cool leans negative, with most reviewers finding the film weighed down by an overly clichéd script and a predictable narrative that fails to transcend the rom-com conventions it attempts to satirise. Where praise exists, it is modest — some critics noted that the romance element works to a degree, and one highlighted an interesting parallel drawn with Love in the Time of Cholera. The comedy largely misfires, the climax is seen as weak, and the director's visual flair is described as showy but hollow without stronger material to support it. A few reviewers acknowledge it as enjoyable in parts, but the consensus is that the film is forgettable and fails to leave a lasting impact.
4 rated reviews · 1 positive · 1 mixed · 2 negative
AI-generated summary of 5 critic reviews · may contain errors
Report inaccuracyCritic Reviews (5)
Updated“The stunningly clichéd script is brought to life by debutant Justin Reardon's flashy direction in which we are 'swept into' Me's life with quirky camerawork. The film cuts to different time zones, and even different countries, and Me even becomes Oriental for a while – it's all showy work but it seems more like a director's advertising showreel rather than a completely piece of cinema. With a better script, and a better production that guarantees him a solid release, Reardon can surely make a good movie, this one ultimately is a very boring and forgettable one.”Read full review ↗
“While the romance element clicks, the film doesn't quite work as a comedy. A few one-liners do make you giggle, but that's that. In fact, the film works as a drama, especially towards the end. We particularly liked how the film draws parallels with Love in the Time of Cholera. Nonetheless, if you are open to watching an unromantic love story and are obsessed with Chris Evans' smouldering looks, you won't mind this unconventional 'guy flick' about the bad boy and his forbidden love.”Read full review ↗
“With less of action between the protagonists and more of discerning analysis of the emotion, "love", the script only surfs through the subject. Romance, "an adventurous risk", is tackled theoretically and thus, loses its focus occasionally. Also, the climax ends on a weak note, hence the film does not create or leave an impact on the viewers.”Read full review ↗
“Towards the end of the film, we see our hero making a breathless dash though the airport, as he's trying to find Her. He notes to himself that what he's really doing is trying to outrun a cliché. Well, Playing It Cool doesn't manage to outrun any of those clichés it attempts to satirise. What a pity.”Read full review ↗
“A predictable and very familiar rom-com...Full of clichés, but enjoyable in parts.”Read full review ↗
Cast & Crew
Cast
- Chris Evans · Narrator
- Michelle Monaghan · Her
- Topher Grace · Scott
- Aubrey Plaza · Mallory
- Luke Wilson · Samson
- Martin Starr · Lyle
- Giovanni Ribisi
- Ashley Tisdale · Herself
- Anthony Mackie · Bryan
- Ioan Gruffudd · Stuffy
- Philip Baker Hall · Granddad
- Patrick Warburton · Dick
- Matthew Morrison · Himself
- Justin Reardon
- Chris Shafer
- Paul Vicknair
Director
Details
- Release Date
- 8 May 2015
- Runtime
- 1h 34m
- Language
- English
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