Down with Love

Starring Renee Zelleweger, Ewan McGregor, David Hyde Pierce

Rated PG-13 for sex-related material

“Down with Love” is made in the style of 1960’s Doris Day and Rock Hudson movies, most notably “Pillow Talk.” It has that old-time kind of presence of exaggeration, gorgeous outfits and happy endings. Many types of films have taken over these days – film-noir and science fiction mostly – but recently there have been movies like “Far From Heaven” and now, “Down with Love” that do everything like it used to be and they remind us that the classic type of filmmaking is still possible.

            Renee Zelleweger stars as Barbara Novak, a woman who has written a book called Down with Love about how women can drop love and begin doing things a man does – you actually have to be a woman to understand, I guess. Anyway, a womanizer/columnist for a men’s magazine named Catcher Block (Ewan McGregor) agrees to meet with Barbara to do a column to advertise her book. But when he doesn’t show up several times, busy with other matters, Barbara forgets him and moves on to become the most famous author in New York when her book tops the selling charts.

            Of course by then, Catcher is furious that he didn’t do a column on it. So his only idea is to prove that Barbara really isn’t down with love; that she can and will fall in love with someone… but whom? Well, Catcher Block of course! Since Barbara hasn’t met Catcher, Catcher changes his accent and puts on glasses and starts to court her. The movie gets real fun after that, and you really feel like you’re watching something in the sixties. It’s always nice to take a trip back in time.

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