The premise: Jon Hamm, Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Chris O’Dowd (no I’m not talking about Bridesmaids), Jennifer Westfeldt and Adam Scott are a set of pretty good looking set of friends. SPOILERS AFTER THE JUMP.
Jason (Scott) and Julie (Westfeldt) are on their way to meet their friends. In the cab ride to the restaurant, they are complaining about a set of their friends who just had kids and now never have time to hang out. Once Julie and Jason arrive to meet their friends, Ben (Hamm) and Missy (Wiig) are missing and Leslie (Rudolph) and Alex (O’Dowd) are waiting for them. Once Ben and Missy return to the table, the group of friends notice a misbehaving child a few tables over. As four of them begin to complain about the child acting like a child with no discipline, Alex and Leslie announce that they are expecting. Awkward silence followed by congratulations.
Cut to four years later when Jason has continued his inability to commit and Julie has not been able to get a guy to take her on a second date, the six friends get together to celebrate Leslie’s birthday. Now Leslie and Alex have two kids and Ben and Missy have a newborn. After leaving Leslie’s birthday, Jason and Julie start talking about kids and the relationship baggage that goes along with having children. Eventually they decide that the best thing they can do is have a child together without actually being together.
At first things are great. Jason keeps seeing women he is unable to commit to and Julie goes on first dates that go nowhere. But then they both start seriously dating other people and things change. What comes after is funny, awkward, uncomfortable and real. A scenario where you can have a child with someone you know, but aren’t with and having things go right 100% of the time is undoubtedly trying. Having a child with someone is an emotional thing and emotions are complicated.
As the movie’s writer, director, producer and female star, Jennifer Westfeldt gets it right in this movie. Friends with Kids does a great job exploring how relationships change as a result of kids. Not just between the parents, but among a group of friends that couldn’t imagine that having kids will change their relationships with each other.
The movie feels a bit long (the way Judd Apatow movies do), but it’s never dull. This one is definitely worth your hard earned money.
