About A Boy

In Review

When a video store goes out of business, its patrons are in luck! My video store did such, and I got to pick up a few DVDs at rock-bottom (well, could’ve been lower) prices. One of them, About A Boy. This is a movie I’ve seen before, and I really like it.

Based on the book by Nick Hornby, this movie is directed by the same two guys who directed the American Pie series. You wouldn’t know it though, About A Boy actually has a soul. Starring Hugh Grant (who apparently didn’t have to act much to play the part), Toni Collette (who stars in another of my favourites, Little Miss Sunshine), and Rachel Weisz (yeow!), this is one of those feel-good movies, but it has a bit of cheek to it as well.

The basic premise is a challenge to the saying “No man is an island”. The man, Hugh Grant, is very independent, and happily so. In his quest to populate his calendar with dates with single mums, he ends up very involved in the life of a 12-year-old boy, and effectively Hugh becomes “about a boy”. He learns through having real relationships and actually caring about other people (ie. love), that there indeed is a substantial purpose to life.

Maybe this is just a movie that I like because its title should actually be “About Matt” (yeah, I’m exaggerating), but at the same time, it is quite entertaining, especially for those familiar with the British way of life (or at least the humour!). Normally, I hate it when writers make kids just as smart as or smarter than the adults, but this kid's thought processes are just funny. It's hard to hate it! But he is definitely [written] smarter than his mum and Hugh Grant.

It is a flawed happily-ever-after ending, because you get the sense that the problematic characters are not fully cured, just better. But I think that is a great way to end a story! For all the warm-and-fuzzy junkies out there, this may still do it for you - everyone, and I mean everyone, is half a couple by the end.

Next time you’re out renting a DVD, give this one a try. Or, even better, if you’re looking for a read, pick up the book. When you’re done, let me know how it is!