You, Me and Him

You, Me and Him focuses on the relationship between lesbian couple, Alex and Olivia. Olivia is a no-nonsense lawyer nearing 40. Alex is in her 20’s and is a stoner “artist.” Despite their differences, they are loving and committed to each other. When Olivia’s biological clock starts ticking, she begins the process of artificial insemination. Alex says she’s not ready to be a parent but too late! Olivia is pregnant and Alex decides she wants most of all to be a family with Olivia. But plot twist! After a drunken night with her lecherous neighbour John, Alex is pregnant too. The couple then embarks on the pregnancy journey together with John tagging along much to Olivia’s displeasure.

What initially works so well about You, Me and Him is Alex and Olivia’s relationship. They are absolutely an odd couple but the film also makes you understand why they are together and that they are very much in love. As much as Alex is often immature, she is incredibly emotionally intelligent and aware. This is something Olivia lacks so they balance each other out. They also share the same sense of humour. Seeing them cry with laughter over teasing their OBGYN is a better display of their love for each other than any sex or kissing scene.

The skeezy next-door neighbour, John is played by David Tennant. Which is an odd choice given the fact that this role was clearly written for Russell Brand. So it ends up with Tennant doing a questionable Russell Brand impression which is none too believable. David Tennant just doesn’t play a believable misogynist. This means the character turns out a lot different than it read in the script. It’s sometimes hard to understand why Olivia hates John so much when he rarely seems as bad as she makes out. David Tennant is just too damn charming for this part.

You, Me and Him is a comedy until the third act. And a pretty goofy one at that. That’s when when the third act dips into major tragedy, it’s jarring and ultimately, a negative. One of Alex and Olivia’s pregnancies ends with a stillbirth. While it’s not Pieces of a Woman-level graphic, it is really harrowing. Following this event, the movie never returns fully to comedy and in general, seems to lose its way. This causes such a disconnect between the first two thirds of the film and the last third. While the last act is emotionally devastating and well done on its own, it doesn’t fit with the rest of the movie.

You, Me and Him has a lot to say about pregnancy. Mostly, it does so in a way that lends itself well to comedy. And then, it plunks you in the deep end of despair out of nowhere. I was really ready to give this movie a positive review based on the first two acts. It’s funny and has a great lesbian relationship. David Tennant was likeable, if miscast. But the severe tonal shift of the third act really overshadows everything else in the film. It’s just strange and unpleasant to watch a movie that begins with a woman smoking a bong and falling off a toilet have that same character experience a stillbirth in the third act.

Overall rating: 6.0/10

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