It's Complicated (film)

It's Complicated is a 2009 American romantic comedy film written and directed by Nancy Meyers, starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin.[4][5][6][7]

• 1 Plot
• 2 Cast
• 3 Production
• 4 Reception
  • 4.1 Critics
  • 4.2 Box office
  • 4.3 Awards and nominations
• 5 Home media
• 6 References
• 7 External links

Plot

Jane (Meryl Streep) is a self-reliant divorcée who owns a successful bakery in Santa Barbara, California. After 10 years of separation and three grown children, she finally achieves a good relationship with her ex-husband Jake (Alec Baldwin), a successful attorney who has remarried the much-younger Agness (Lake Bell).

Jane and Jake attend their son Luke's college graduation in New York. A dinner together develops into an affair, making Jane "the other woman". Part of Jane knows it is wrong, since Jake and Agness are still married and trying to have a baby; the other part of Jane relishes being "the other woman" and continues the affair with Jake in Santa Barbara. Jake is just enjoying the clandestine sex and doesn't show much interest in Jane's growth as a person. He however feels nostalgic for the family life he once had with Jane, particularly her cooking, and being close with his children, and wonders if he should be growing old with Jane rather than starting a new family in late middle-age with Agness. While Agness has Jake scheduled for regular sessions at the fertility clinic, Jake secretly administers sperm control pills, and leaves one day to meet Jane for lunch.

Jake and Jane's children know nothing of their parents' affair, although Harley (John Krasinski), who is engaged to their daughter Lauren, spots them in a hotel and keeps silent. Agness knows nothing, as Jake still has sex with her on demand; her five-year-old son Pedro suspects something when Jake makes phone calls from the bathroom.

Complicating matters is Adam (Steve Martin), an architect hired to remodel Jane's home, who is himself healing from a divorce of his own, and who has begun to fall in love with Jane. He spends time getting to know her as a person. On the night of Luke's graduation party, Jane invites Adam to the party, but is high when he picks her up because she has smoked a joint that Jake had given her earlier. Later, at the party, Adam also smokes the joint and becomes high as well. Jake becomes jealous observing them, but with some cajoling by Jane, he gets high as well. Harley confronts Jake and Jane, stressed from keeping their secret, and eventually agrees to smoke some pot as well. Agness then observes Jake and Jane dancing together, and becomes suspicious of their renewed closeness.

When they leave, Adam asks if they could have something to eat so Jane takes him to her bakery-restaurant and offers to make him anything; he asks for a chocolate croissant, which they make from scratch laughing and having fun. This takes hours, and they enjoy the time together. As her architect, he shows great sensitivity in listening to her needs and vision for her remodeled kitchen and bedroom.

Jake leaves Agness, who kicks him out of their house as he confesses that he's still in love with Jane, who rebuffs his gesture. Eventually via webcam under embarrassing circumstances, Adam learns Jane is still seeing Jake. Adam knows his boundaries and tells Jane he cannot continue seeing her as this triangle will only lead to heartbreak. Her kids also find out, and they are not happy about Mom and Dad getting together again, as they are still recovering from the divorce ten years ago. Jane tells them she is not getting back with their dad, who then drives off in his Porsche while the children go to Harley and Lauren's house. Jane soon reconciles with the kids, citing that she wanted to do this for herself, which they sympathize. When she returns home, Jake awaits her to talk, and the two end their affair on amicable terms.

The film ends with Adam returning to Jane's house to work on her addition and before the credits roll Jane and Adam are seen laughing while walking into her house.

Cast

• Meryl Streep as Jane Adler
• Alec Baldwin as Jake Adler
• Steve Martin as Adam Schaffer
• John Krasinski as Harley
• Lake Bell as Agness Adler
• Mary Kay Place as Joanne
• Rita Wilson as Trisha
• Alexandra Wentworth as Diane
• Hunter Parrish as Luke Adler
• Zoe Kazan as Gabby Adler
• Caitlin Fitzgerald as Lauren Adler
• James Patrick Stuart as Dr. Moss
• Blanchard Ryan as Annalise
• Michael Rivera as Eddie
• Robert Curtis Brown as Peter
• Peter Mackenzie as Dr. Alan
• Rosalie Ward as Alex

Production

In May 2008, Nancy Meyers agreed to a project for Universal Studios that she would write and direct, to be co-produced with Scott Rudin.[8] The project was referred to as The Untitled Nancy Meyers Project during its inception and early production. Establishing commitments from the principals began in 2008, with Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin entering discussions in August,[4][6] and Steve Martin joining the cast in October.[5] Casting continued through 2009, with Zoe Kazan, Lake Bell, and Hunter Parrish joining in January,[9] John Krasinski in February,[10] Rita Wilson in March,[11] and Caitlin Fitzgerald in June.[12]

The sets were easy to design. Most scenes take place in the protagonist's home and interior courtyard, and as such the architectural details had to be fastidiously worked out, but the rooms were kept bare to reflect the character's functional tastes and limited budget. There are relatively few decorations, just "a bunch of thrift-store things haphazardly thrown together," in the words of production designer Jon Hutman. The building itself is a traditional 1920s Spanish-ranch-style adobe-mud house which "epitomised the Santa Barbara area."[13]

Filming commenced in New York City in April 2009,[14] and completed in August 2009.[15] It's Complicated was released on December 25, 2009.[16][17]

Reception

Critics

The film has received generally mixed reviews. Review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes reports that 57% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 161 reviews, with an average score of 5.8/10. The critical consensus is: Despite fine work by an appealing cast, It's Complicated is predictable romantic comedy fare, going for broad laughs instead of subtlety and nuance.[18] Another review aggregator, Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score from 1 to 100 based on reviews from mainstream critics, gave the film an average score of 57% based on 30 reviews.[19]

Box office

The film took #4 in its opening weekend behind Avatar, Sherlock Holmes, and Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel with $22,100,820. It currently has a total gross of $112,927,070 in North America and a total of $214,727,200 worldwide.[3]

Awards and nominations

Awards
Award	Category	Recipient(s)	Outcome
Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards	Best Comedy Film	Film	Nominated
Golden Globe Awards[20]	Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy	Meryl Streep	Nominated
	Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy	Nancy Meyers	Nominated
	Best Screenplay	Nancy Meyers	Nominated
National Board of Review Awards	Best Cast	Alec Baldwin, Meryl Streep and Steve Martin	Won
Satellite Awards	Best Film – Musical or Comedy	Film	Nominated
BAFTA Awards	Best Supporting Actor	Alec Baldwin	Nominated

Home media

It's Complicated became available on DVD and Blu-ray April 27, 2010.[21]

References

External links

• Official website
• It's Complicated at the Internet Movie Database
• It's Complicated at Box Office Mojo