Something's Gotta Give

​Falling in love can be an experience that is unnerving and unsettling to say the least. It could be so for even someone who's past their prime years in life, and who's somewhat given up on it. This becomes a fascinating object of exploration for Nancy Meyers in her charming flick centered around Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton. Jack plays Harry, a man in his 60s who dates women half his age. Diane plays Erica, a woman in her late 50s who has sort of give up on romantic love. Harry is charming, can talk smooth and is ever smiling, the kind of roles Nicholson excels at (a subtle throwback to his character from "Terms of Endearment"). Erica is wise, elegant, and a tad bit serious. At their core though, Harry is weary and yearning for real love and Erica is bubbly and overflowing with youth-ly affection. Once they discover how well they complement each other, it unsettles their lives like nothing else. They fall in love. ​Nancy takes her time unraveling the plot till this point of discovery and the strange consequences that follow. The ingenious thing about this flick is surely the way Nancy sets up Harry and Erica, their premises, their baggages, the way they meet, converse, fall in love, and deal with its implications on their respective lives. Frances McDormand is lovely in her short stint with the film. Amanda Peet and Keanu Reeves are good, the latter's character being the only one that's left with an unsatisfying loose end, my only qualm about the film. Keen followers of Hans Zimmer will relish with surprise at this film's beautiful and mellow soundtrack, a departure from his usual repertoire. What's more surprising, delightful, and relishable is how "Something's Gotta Give" takes two aging characters and makes them fall in love in a genuine, unnerving, and believable way. ​

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