Everyone talks about being a parent, at some point, and some don’t want to be and choose otherwise; however curiosity of the process that unfolds after you get jiggy and conceive is something everyone has.
The book, What To Expect When You Are Expecting by Heidi Murkoff, published in 1985 is the inspiration for this movie; similarly to its iconic bible status for expecting parents. With sales of over 35 million copies worldwide and a ranking on the USA Today’s 25 most influential books of the past 25 year it provides a wealth a knowledge, up-to-the-minute information and advice about the mysterious and unpredictable process of pregnancy.
However the humour, frank and modern tone adds to its appeal to being adapted to a movie. If you have seen the day series movies (Valentine’s day, New years eve, etc), and loved those, you will enjoy this movie as it weaves and collides characters with different experiences at “having a baby” together.
The storyline revolves around 5 couples whose interconnected lives are turned upside down by the challenges of parenthood – in all stages; pre-pregnancy, infertility, adoption, pregnant and parenting. The couples have to face these challenges and their fears with these stages and also nurture their relationships, which is damn difficult and ultimately come to the understanding that life doesn’t always deliver what you expected, no matter what you plan for.
Jules (Cameron Diaz) and Evan (Matthew Morrison) are celebrities that get thrown into parenthood and when they discover she is pregnant; their “secret relationship” becomes scrutinized. Rosie (Anna Kendrick) and Marco (Chace Crawford) are thrown into parenthood before they even have a first date; when a one night stand gives them challenges they are both not sure they are ready for.
Photographer Holly (Jennifer Lopez) specializes in baby photography and wants a child so bad, she is determined to adopt anywhere on the globe however her husband Alex (Rodrigo Santoro) is uncertain of this life-changing step. He enlists assistance from a “dudes” support group where fathers can tell it like it is.
The “dudes” support group had the most hilarious scenes through the movie, as they crave their single lives but would never change their current fatherhood status for anything. They have secrets from their wives about their kids and everything else related to parenting.
Wendy (Elizabeth Banks) is a baby-obsessed author, baby store owner and advocate who is struggling to fall pregnant. Her husband, Gary (Ben Falcone) is struggling with his relationship with his forever-young-alpha-male dad, Ramsey (Dennis Quiad), who is married to a YOUNG trophy-wife model, Skyler (Brroklyn Decker), and is pregnant with twins.
The cast is impressive; however I have to admit – even though it is funny, the stories are relevant and I could relate, I fell asleep briefly during the screening. So it gets 3/5 segs stars for humour, storyline and casting.
The movie starts on the 15th June 2012 at Nu-metro theatres:
Website: http://whattoexpectthefilm.com/
Director: kirk Jones
Tagline: It’s too late to pull out now
Censorship: Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, thematic elements and language
Movie length: 1 hour 39 minutes
IMDB Score: 5.4/10
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance