Poor Cal. He thinks he’s moments away from a creme brulee when his wife Emily hits him with a wallop: she wants a divorce. And that’s not all. On the tense car ride home, Emily (Julianne Moore) confesses that she slept with someone. Cal (Steve Carell) pulls a LadyBird out the car but it’s not going to save his marriage.
At a local bar, a very despondent Cal is attracting the wrong kind of attention. Crying in public will tend to do that. Resident lady’s man Jacob (Ryan Gosling) takes pity on him, and takes him under his wing to dress him up and teach him how to flirt. Best wing man ever? Suddenly Cal, who’s only ever been with his wife, is putting serious notches into his new, single guy Ikea bedpost. Which doesn’t sit well with Emily, but who is she to complain. Right?
Meanwhile, Jacob’s love life is going in the opposite direction. He’s met a woman he actually wants to not just sleep with, but wake up with. Hannah (Emma Stone) is the right mix of neurotic-quirky-cute and for the first time, Jacob’s falling in love.
Sure it’s a little too sweet sometimes, but Crazy Stupid Love is a legitimately funny rom-com with effervescent dialogue delivered by an A-list cast. Carell is likable as ever, making a convincing transformation both inside and out. For his part, Gosling is game for poking a little fun at his own image, punctuating some of the absurd if not ever quite crazy idiosyncrasies of dating, whether it’s the first or second time around. There’s a maturity (perhaps a pre-Tinder maturity) to it that gives it universal appeal.
ASSHOLES WATCHING MOVIES 
That’s a great cast in your tags, but I still don’t want to see it. I just can’t do rom-coms. Nice review though!
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Kevin Bacon is in this? What does he do? I’d see it just for him!
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I saw this when it first came out and really liked it. Good ensemble that does it up right.
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I loved this one and I’m not normally one for the romances 🙂 Carrell and Gosling had great chemistry and Emma Stones hair was on point. Time for a rewatch!
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I missed this when it first came out. Sounds worthwhile, though.
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It almost sounds like “The 40 Year Old Virgin: Part II. The Divorced Non-Virgin.”
But I’d see it. I love Carrell.
Is it nice or weird seeing Gosling and Stone together again, though? After La La Land….
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Yaaaaas! I’m owed some kind of royalties by now – I lost count of the number of times I’ve given this movie as a gift. It’s the perfect romcom for people who hate romcoms!
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Love this movie.
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Like the cast … other than Julianne Moore (who I refuse to watch any more). Good review!
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I’m not a romcom guy, but I watched this a while back and thoroughly enjoyed it.
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I loved it one or I’m not usually certain because the romances 🙂 Carrell then Gosling had great chemistry yet Emma Stones cloud used to be regarding point. Time because of a rewatch!
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