Friends With Kids

I was very curious in seeing how accurate a film could be when the Writer/Director/Star, Jennifer Westfeldt, doesn't have kids. Apparently very accurate, and very enjoyable, yet at times very depressing. This is the story of 6 friends who's lives take very different turns. No one in the film opposes marriage, but kids are what change everything. The 6 players are Leslie and Alex (Maya Rudolph & Chris O'Dowd) who were the first to be married and the first to have kids. Missy and Ben (Kristen Wiig and Jon Hamm) are the sexual couple of the film. Their relationship is based on pleasure, but they love each other. They also are married and have a kid. Lastly there is Julie and Jason (Jennifer Westfeldt & Adam Scott) who are not married and are not even involved with each other. They are best friends with absolutely no romantic feelings between them. As everyone's lives begin to move forward in the evolutionary process we all know as "normal",  Jason and Julie feel like everyone is doing it wrong. As they all get together a few years down the road, Alex and Leslie have 2 kids and Ben and Missy have one, Jason and Jules realize, these people are not the ones they were friends with. The daily stress of raising children, no time for romance let alone sex of any kind, they feel depressed for their friends and at the same time happy with their current lives of freedom and friendship. Then Jason comes up with the brilliant idea of being able to have a child without losing his mind. A mutual agreement between friends. They decide to have a kid together, keep their friendship in tact, split the responsibility 50/50, and keep their dating lives exactly the same. Nothing can go wrong here. Their friends take issue with it as it is an asinine idea, but they are adults and can do what they please. Jason and Jules hush the naysayers pretty quickly when the baby is born, but like all things new and exciting, they can quickly become taxing and exhaustive. Tensions begin to flair when each of the become involved with other people. Jason with Mary Jane (Megan Fox) and Julie with Kurt (Edward Burns). This is the point where decision have to be made, and no one wants to face the harsh reality that everyone but Jason and Julie knew would arise. It climaxes at what of the most intense and uncomfortable drunken dinner arguments of all time and lives are forever changed. This is one of the best films I have seen in a while, especially a film that deals with a topic so ordinary to 90% of the population. I really enjoyed it and if you have kids and are happy with your marriage you will too. If you have kids and hate your wife, this may just push you into divorce. It is an eye opener and you may not like what you see.


NBM rates Friends With Kids - Phenomenal