A Character to Love

***SPOILER ALERT***

A major part of the moviegoing experience is one’s reaction to one or more characters. In some cases, we may identify with a single character. We root for the underdog or cheer on as the nice guy tries to get the girl. At other times, we are simply fascinated by a particular character, good or bad.

I enjoyed Nancy Meyer’s film Something’s Gotta Give. Some have argued that the screenplay isn’t that original. And others have noted that Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton are not really acting—they’re essentially just being themselves. There is some truth to both arguments, but I liked the film for several reasons.



I really like Diane. She’s intelligent and talented. In Something’s Gotta Give, she played Erica Barry, a successful playwright. Although this film isn’t groundbreaking, it is unconventional in its portrayal of an aging woman. I hate how aging women are often portrayed as asexual matriarchs. In this particular film, Erica had what appeared to be a perfect life. She was divorced but happy, and there was no indication that she was in any hurry to find the perfect man. She was content with her life as a single woman.



Erica finds love under unusual circumstances. She fell for her daughter’s much older suitor, Harry (played by Nicholson). Harry, of course, is the typical playboy who loves younger women. His relationship with Erica was short-lived but intense. He ends up breaking her heart. So, that’s kind of typical of other movies, but Erica turned around and wrote a phenomenal play. She moved on and started dating a younger and much hotter man.

Although the film is predictable and trite in a lot of ways, I just couldn’t get enough of Erica Barry—of Diane Keaton. She cried when she saw Harry with another woman. However, during a conversation with her daughter, she explained that one has to take risks in life—something her daughter tended to avoid. She loved and accepted loss as a part of life, and that’s why I found this character quite memorable. Erica Barry is a strong woman. She is a character to love!