3417. Something Borrowed (2011)

Starring: Ginnifer Goodwin, Kate Hudson, John Krasinski

Director: Luke Greenfield

Running Time: 112 mins

Something Borrowed is an American film about a woman who begins to fall for her long-time best friend’s fiancé, but struggles to reveal her feelings for fear of destroying her friendship.

On the face of things, Something Borrowed is a very cheesy romantic comedy, with all the hallmarks of a generic watch. Admittedly, that’s not entirely untrue, but what is surprising about the film is the way in which it takes a fairly predictable story and tells it with passion and humour, proving a genuinely captivating watch throughout.

There are strengths and weaknesses to this movie, but let’s start on the positive side. Above all, the best thing about Something Borrowed is that it is, at least relatively speaking for the genre, an emotionally genuine movie.

It’s not quite powerful enough to tug at your heartstrings, but it tells a captivating story of a seemingly happy but relatively shy woman begin to push beyond her limits as she finally seeks to be with a man that she has loved for years since they were at university together.

Ginnifer Goodwin is really lovely in the lead role, and the added spectre of Kate Hudson’s ire should Goodwin’s love for Hudson’s fiancé (played by Colin Egglesfield) makes for a really entertaining hook that makes this film more than just a ‘love story for the ages’.

There’s also a good amount of laughs in Something Borrowed. Again, it’s not wall-to-wall hilarious, but the film features some fun slapstick moments, awkward scenes and a smattering of witty lines of dialogue, mostly delivered by John Krasinski as Goodwin’s best friend.

Oddly, however, the film squanders Krasinski’s charisma by playing him as an unnecessarily abrasive character, who pushes Goodwin way too hard in her romantic endeavours, and not exactly for particularly heartwarming reasons either.

As a result, the movie finds itself often caught between sappy rom-com and slightly misjudged comedy, never quite striking the perfect balance despite the fact that its central story does a good job at keeping you entertained and smiling throughout.

In short, Something Borrowed is a perfectly pleasant movie, with a couple of lovely lead performances and genuine emotional depth that make it a captivating watch. Funny from time to time, it’s an enjoyable rom-com, albeit one that doesn’t always know exactly what it is. So, that’s why I’m giving it a 7.3 overall.