Crazy Little Things

I noticed an interesting trend that came to light after watching the movie Crazy, Stupid, Love.  Quick summary for those that haven't seen it; Steve Carell plays an ordinary middle aged father who just found out that his wife, played by Julianne Moore, had an affair and wants a divorce.  He eventually meets Ryan Gosling, a self-assured playboy, who decides to help him find his lost manhood.  Now before you think this is a typical chick flick, keep in mind, the principal characters we are focusing on are the men. 

It's an interesting perspective to watch a man go through the transformation process in an attempt to make himself more desirable to the opposite sex.  Yes, at the core, this is a love story, but it is one filled with heartache, comedy, depth, and soul.  It looks at the different forms love can take and the different ways we try to capture and keep it.  For me, it was about the ways love can change us as we fall in and out of it.  Personally, I haven't really encountered many stories like this, and I have to admit, even though the themes explored aren't gender specific, I was enthralled.  The change of view was refreshing and it felt like the genre was getting a much needed breath of fresh air.

Soon after watching Crazy, Stupid, Love, I read the book Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby.  This is a great book by a best selling author who always manages to surprise me in so many small ways.  Juliet, Naked brings us two people who have settled for what was comfortable and the reclusive former rock star who unknowingly changed their fate with his music. 

Annie is the female protagonist and even though she was written by a man, she was a character I had absolutely no problem relating to.  We are similar in many ways and I can safely say I knew exactly how she was feeling throughout the book because I had come to similar conclusions about my own life even though we are completely different in that regard.  This is a story that speaks of loneliness, regret, and the consequences of our choices to run away or settle down.  It's amazing how your entire perspective can change just by stepping back and looking at things from a different angle.

*~~* SPOILERS UPCOMING! *~~*

There are quite a few parallels I could draw between the two stories but the thing that stayed with me long after they were over was the fact neither of them had a defined ending.  The outcomes were implied, but the audience was left to construct their own versions of the journey that would take these characters to where we think they will end up.  Most viewers or readers will assume that the characters end up together, happily in love, but as is the case in reality, there are no guarantees that is what actually happens.  See what I mean about new life and surprises?

These stories were more than just about falling in and out of love.  They were about falling down and learning how to get up and keep going; how to overcome the roadblocks in your life and become better people for it.  Most importantly, it was a reminder that our own happy endings are out there somewhere, we just need to go make them happen.