Director: Leslye Headland
Starring: Alison Brie, Jason Sudeikis, Adam Scott, Jason Mantzoukas, Natasha Lyonne, Amanda Peet
Every once a while during the film festival circuit you will get that runaway romantic comedy smash that gets all the stuffy old reviewers by the heart. In 2015 it was Leslye Headland’s Sleeping With Other People that captured the heart of Sundance, and now you can experience some hype for yourself.
Sleeping With Other People tells the story of Lainey (Alison Brie) and Jake (Jason Sudeikis), an accidental meeting that happens when Lainey tries to lose her virginity with her T.A. named Matthew (Adam Scott) just down the hall from Jake. Instead Lainey and Jake drown their sorrows together, thus losing their virginities to each other instead. From there we see that the pair have grown up, and have become as bad as each other with their love lives, with Lainey still lusting after Matthew after all those years and Jake hiding his feelings by not addressing, so they join forces once more to help each other become better people in their relationships.
Director and Screenwriter Leslye Headland has a knack for writing witty and charming characters that we should not like but do, as we have seen in her previous films like About Last Night and Bachelorette. The story arc itself is nothing original, finding yourself in New York City seems to be convention number one where it comes to Romantic Comedies but Headland works her magic to make sure we are captivated through out. With her films getting better with every release, and with some pretty high profile behind her (Will Ferrell is listed as a producer on the film) you just know she is going to be name we will see in the future.
But the biggest selling point of the film is the cast. From the get go we are thrown into the instant chemistry between Brie and Sudeikis, they bounce off each other immediately, and despite how terrible Lainey and Jake are as people come across as completely likeable and want to root for them. The balance between the hilarious (personal favourite moment would be Lainey’s drug induced dancing to David Bowie’s Modern Love) and the heart breaking really bring an overused story arc into fresh territory. We cannot forget the supporting cast either; Natasha Lyonne still continues to make her mark as the criminally underused friend of the main protagonist in movies, this time as the hilarious Kara. She comes in, graces us with her magical presence, and then leaves. Another character would be Jason Mantzoukas as Xander, who delivers some great one-liners through out. Even if you are not a fan of rom-coms, you have to watch it for the cast.
Is Sleeping With Other People any good? Very much so, the acting is great, fresh and modern for the new wealth of cinemagoers. While it might seem to stick to the same old story to some, others may well appreciate the modern uplift to a time-honoured tradition.
Sleeping With Other People will be available on DVD from February 22, pre-order now on Amazon!
