A single woman who's mistaken for a stranger's blind date, leads to her finding the perfect boyfriend.
If it could decide whether it was a cute romcom or a dirty one, Man Up would be a real gem, but as charming as it is, it falls between two stools and never manages to, ahem, Man Up.
Not up there with key US influences Annie Hall, When Harry Met Sally and Jerry Maguire, but a romcom Brits can be proud of. Make a date of it.
Lake Bell steals the show in Ben Palmer's fast and mostly funny rom-com.
Man Up has enough breezy pleasures to make it worthy of recommendation, particularly the chemistry between its leads and the dorky charms of Bell.
We know where the story is headed, and it gets progressively soapier and clumsier as it nears its destination, but along the way Tess Morris’s script maps out a modern dating landscape strewn with anxiety, deceit, emotional baggage and drunken meltdowns – all of which make true romance even harder to find.
They make an engaging couple with a very effective comic rapport but the film itself is more soppy British sitcom than genuine screwball. It is never quite as anarchic as it should have been.
Man Up is better in the first half, when a simple twist of fate leads to a night on the town, and much less believable in a second half that grows increasingly conventional in this undemanding romp.
Avoids the stale tropes and cliches while giving audiences what’s required.
Simon Pegg never seems at ease in this manic and outdated tale of a blind date gone wrong.
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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