LFF Diary, Day 2 - LIKE CRAZY

LFF 2011 Diary, Day 2: Like Crazy (Rating: ***) A film about young love, torn apart by the boundaries and laws of different countries, Like Crazy may be touching and sweet for some, but for others it may be a somewhat irritating and troublesome experience.

When a young English student, Anna, falls in love with a fellow college student, Jacob, whilst studying in L.A., Anna’s graduation and expiring student visa threatens to tear the two lovers apart. And when Anna decides she cannot bear to be apart from Jacob and breaks the regulations of her stay in America, the legal repercussions look certain to keep their relationship from continuing.

Brit actress Felicity Jones and rising American star Anton Yelchin play this particular infatuated couple with a very realistic tone and atmosphere. Yes, the dialogue at times is occasionally muffled and grumbly, the school of method acting no doubt having an influence, yet there is a genuine quality to their respective portrayal of these two characters. The two feel very real as this is no doubt the way young people behave when they fall in love. Like David Lynch famously once said, lovers often say “corny” things in films because people really do say “corny” things when they are in love.

To some this style of dialogue will prove irksome, though fans of Like Crazy will be those who have either had a similar relationship or experience, or those who feel they can in some way relate to Anna and Jacob’s pain. If not spectacularly original or challenging, Like Crazy is in itself watchable for the depiction of the exhuberance of youth and the mistakes we make when we are young. Such is Anna and Jacob’s irrational behaviour you might feel inclined to feel unsympathetic to their problems, but director Drake Doremus adds enough elements that seem genuine and real to make you believe in Like Crazy.

The excellent Jennifer Lawrence makes a far too brief an appearance as Jacob’s intervening love relationship, but adds enough heartfelt moments to respect her acting prowess despite her lack of screentime. Like Crazy may be limited to audiences who have been in those types of relationships, but maybe those who haven’t have just have been heartbroken enough times to get Like Crazy.