Kutcher & Peet © Touchstone Pictures.
One of the most overlooked films of Ashton Kutcher’s career, “A Lot Like Love,” is possibly the most realistic love story that has ever been captured on film.
“A Lot Like Love” begins at an LA airport with the two main characters waiting on a flight to New York City. Oliver, (Ashton Kutcher), a recent college graduate, meets Emily (Amanda Peet), a bad girl, in post break-up phase.
After bumping into one another, they join the mile-high club in an airplane bathroom.
Oliver sees this meeting as the beginning of something good, while Emily sees it as nothing more than a quick rebound from her most recent break-up. She does not introduce herself.
Later, they bump into each other again, and spend the afternoon meandering the streets of New York together setting the precedence for a could-be relationship.
Emily is a struggling actress while Oliver is eager to begin his own company as a diaper salesman, both attempting to put their “ducks in-a-row.” Broken into four chapters, each at a crossroad in one of the characters’ lives, the story moves through the past seven years until the present.
Separately, the characters try to create their own identities, each with different failed lovers and jobs. Over the years, they spend short amounts of time together. During each chapter, Emily and Oliver find comfort in their friendship after life has knocked them to their knees.
Life proceeds with a pensive undertone about what could be between the two, something most love stories lack. This is a creative dynamic, spacing a friendship over years that keeps the viewer eagerly waiting for the couple to make it work.
At the beginning, Emily is very indecisive about life and what to accomplish, however, she grows throughout the movie as a very dynamic character. Oliver is the exact opposite, a driven individual who is so focused on creating a successful business that he seems to bypass what may be most important in life. The stark contrast in personalities makes for a compelling relationship, one that, against all odds, works well.
“A Lot Like Love” captures a time in life when nothing is certain, and the struggle to find one’s self amidst fighting against falling in love because life is in the way.
“A Lot Like Love” has creative twists that keeps the viewers going to a place in their lives, wondering “what if” life played out differently, where would they be? Emily and Oliver’s story displays the idea that one needs to be a just a little crazy to be loved.
