Far from perfect, but on the whole, rather enjoyable.
by Martin Hafer
Have you ever watched a film that was pretty good but could easily have been better? Well, that’s my reaction to What If, a new DVD release which stars Daniel Radcliffe. It’s a pretty decent little romance, but the film also sure looks like the script could have used decent editing, as sometimes the dialog is needlessly offensive–with ample references to feces and the like.
- What If
- Directed by
Michael Dowse - Cast
Daniel Radcliffe, Zoe Kazan, Megan Park - Release Date
6 August 2014 - Martin’s Grade: B
Additionally, while the two leads (Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan) are both very likable, some of the supporting characters are absolutely ridiculous, as no one talks or acts like some of these folks.
The film is much like the premise behind When Harry Met Sally. In other words, it questions whether a man and woman can be just friends and stay that way. In this case, Wallace meets Chantry–a woman who is engaged and living with another man. They agree to only be friends, but as the film progresses, you see them spending more and more time together and they obviously have some chemistry.
*****
The film has lots of sweet and amusing moments between the leads–and the mostly clever script and nice acting work together well most of the film. But at other points, this chemistry is obscured by needless distractions–which I talked about above.
All in all, however, the good does outweigh the bad and the film will be an interesting experience to folks who love Radcliffe–which these days seems to be practically everyone.
