On Friday I flew to Toronto with Porter Airlines. Unlike most airlines they do not charge for checked bags (well the first 2 anyway) and they feed and water you on the plane. It was a nice change but as they mainly fly around Toronto I suppose there won’t be too much Porter airlines in the near future.
I am staying with my friend LO who I have known since primary school (definitely since age 7, possibly before then). She has been in Toronto for many years and I’ve visited her a few times so I have seen the main tourist attractions. This means I can spend the weekend just hanging out.
On Friday we went to the cinema. Despite living very close to the cinema (5-10 min walk) LO rarely goes. Most of the cinema screens were showing Harry Potter so the choice was limited. Also we were adopting a “see how the evening goes” strategy. When we wandered from dinner to the cinema really Life As We Know It. It stars Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel as two people who hate each other and end up as guardians of their orphaned godchild. This being Hollywood, after an appropriate amount of bickering they end up in bed together, then have a falling out and finally reconcile to gleeful domestic bliss.
The general formula does not bother me. Indeed I have spent many happy hours watching formulaic romantic comedies. Additionally I have enjoyed films with both leads (Win a date with Tad Hamiliton and 27 Dresses). On the other hand the reviews were generally neutral or negative. I went with low expectations and they were met.
Things I didn’t like about Life As We Know It
1. The title
2. Katherine Heigl wearing wooly hats as a fashion accessory with summer dresses
3. The way the leads don’t seem to have any friends
4. The baby never gets older until right at the end
5. Josh Lucas (who plays Katherine Heigl’s secondary love interest) is looking a lot less attractive than he did in Sweet Home Alabama
6. The jumpy montage at the beginning
7. Josh Duhamel’s character is called Messer
8. Josh Duhamel’s character is a womanizer who sleeps around and makes booty calls while on dates. Simultaneously he is a good decent guy who wants a family. We all like character arcs but his arc was jumpy and fragmented and completely unbelievable
Things I liked about Life As We Know It
1. Not too long (a common failing of many modern movies)
2. Attractive leads
3. Some funny bits
4. Didn’t take itself too seriously
5. I didn’t really believe in characters
6. LO seemed to enjoy it and I laughed in places
Overall, not as bad as I feared, not as good as I hoped, 2 stars.
Saturday we went to a wine and food show where hundreds of stalls gave us food and drinks in exchange for tickets. Each ticket cost $1 but could only be purchased in $20 increments. There was some good food but generally I felt like I was being charged a lot for small portions on plastic plates. However the worst was the scant numbers of chairs available. It was a deliberate plan by organizers to keep people moving but my feet did not like it. If I were a drinker I think I might have enjoyed it better. Still I suppose anywhere I can consume nutella crepes can’t be all bad
After food and wine we went for dinner and then off to a birthday party. I left about 12.30 long before LO because I don’t have her stamina for partying.
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