“Must Love Dogs” stars John Cusack, Diane Lane, and co-stars Elizabeth Perkins, Christopher Plummer and many more. It’s written and directed by Gary David Goldberg, who’s previous work is found on the small screen.

Sarah Nolan (Diane Lane) is recently divorced pre-school teacher looking for the right guy to wake up and eat breakfast with for the rest of her life. Thanks to her sister, Sarah’s profile get puts on PerfectMatch.com with the closing line stating “must love dogs”. Jake (John Cusack) is a hopeless romantic who comes across her enthusiastic profile and stunning picture. They just might be the perfect match.

Stepping into my shady zone (that being romantic comedies), I wasn’t too excited about seeing this one, which is why it flew under my radar. However, I really enjoyed the story and more importantly the characters. Under rated actor John Cusack nails his role as the energetic and charming man and Diane Lane couldn’t be more gorgeous as the shy and beautiful-without-knowing-it teacher. Not only is this movie romantic, it’s also surprisingly funny and witty. If you take in consideration my uncontrollable sickness to dislike most romantic comedies, you will realize that this movie is much better than it should be.

Unlike most romantic comedies, this one is simultaneously romantic and very funny. A very difficult feat if you ask me. I wasn’t trying to predict the predictable story, which just proves that I was really interested in the movie and the very likable characters developed with style and grace. John Cusack and Diane Lane have expert chemistry that carries this film smoothly through it’s appropriate 98 min running time. The ending is sweet and the film definitely knows how to touch the viewers heart.

Astonishingly, I highly recommend “Must Love Dogs”. From the near hilarious opening to the heartfelt ending, I couldn’t adore this movie more. Some people might think this is a girlie movie, but it’s not. It has viewpoints from both the male and female perspectives. This isn’t very usual when it comes to this genre. The most amazing thing about it is the chemistry. It’s very obvious that John Cusack and Diane Lane clicked during the screening for “Must Love Dogs”. Other than it being forgivingly predictable, there really isn’t much bad to say about this film. Some might say I am praising this movie too much, but, I really liked it. Not the best romantic comedy, but it was undeniably close to making the top 5 list. Whether you spend money on a rental or catch it on television, this one is easily worth checking out. 4/5 stars

Written by Derek Fleek
http://www.moviefilmreview.com/author/Derek-Fleek