something's gotta give: *** 1/2

OK, I know this is an OLD movie, but I just saw it yesterday... and wow, it's pretty darn good! Part of this might be because I had pretty low expectations. Not only did I not see it in the theatre, or rent the movie on DVD, I actually DVRed it off of TNT. Yes, TNT. AND I didn't watch it for over a week!

Anyway, the performances were pretty darn refreshing. I mean, Jack Nicholson playing an aging, uber-successful man who only dates women under 30? Not exactly a stretch. But amazingly enough, he still had a pretty fresh take on it. The plot also helped in this regard by having some cool little twists.

And hello, Diane Keaton rocked the house! She was so convincing at playing a divorced woman in her 50s, who thinks she has life all figured out. She's like the ultimate example of the competent, modern woman who doesn't need a man in her life. (not to get personal here, but this totally describes my own mother... so perhaps, that's another reason I liked the flick!) Of course, she ends up falling in love with Jack's character... like you couldn't have seen that coming. But even cooler is that they have Keanu Reeves also "courting" her. The plot capitalizes on the possibilities of older women being with a younger guy, ala Demi Moore/Ashton Kutcher.

There are some parts that seem over the top... Jack's character meets Diane because he's dating her daughter. And we're supposed to believe that this gigolo hasn't slept with the daughter yet?!?! Um, right. The house in the Hamptons is a bit of a stretch. And the end of the story gets kinda fanciful. (Oh, and I think they should've cast the Keanu part differently, because he never seems passionate enough. He's always the monotone Matrix guy to me)

However, I still highly recommend it. Especially if you're the child of divorced parents, who's ever wondered how to get your Mom a man. (um, is that just me and my sis?!) Other than that, it's nice to think about how age relates to love. Definitely worth all the Oscar talk it got. And worth an afternoon on TNT.