Unfocused, but I did like it

James L. Brooks is one of my favourite filmmakers. As Good as it Gets would put him there alone, but he's also got Broadcast News and Terms of Endearment. He's just terrific. How Do You Know has his mark on it for sure. We get some great moments, fun characters, and a love triangle that had a faint echo of Broadcast News' central trio. But, this is no Broadcast News, and I think the main reason is a lack of focus.

The opening scene is of the frustrated, ineffective boy swatting at the t-ball before young Lisa shows him up and gets shoved down for her efforts. This sets up a story of a female athlete who has the goods but faces unfair discrimination and jealousy from male peers... a story that never emerges.

The main plot is mostly about the love triangle, and the three leads are given complex characters to play. Each one feels human, warm, and witty. It's a little too pat, with the outcome predictable, but Brooks' dialogue and scene structure keeps it working (more or less).

Unfortunately, we're not only getting the frustrated athlete storyline, we're also getting a corporate scam thriller playing in the background of Paul Rudd's character George, PLUS the really complicated relationship he has with his father.

I feel like there was a good movie about a female athlete who is facing down the male-ness of her profession PLUS facing the reality of getting older. It's not a career with great longevity. Her relationship with Owen Wilson was perfectly set up to show us her frustration in relief to a male athlete who was well-meaning, but clueless about her struggles. She loves this guy, but is infuriated by his inability to understand that she isn't having the career luck he enjoys.

But, I also think there was a GREAT movie in the father-son dynamic between Rudd and Nicholson. It's not developed at all. While it isn't fair to call a movie bad because one thinks a different film could have been made, I still lament that we didn't get to explore more of the love between these two, as well as the hurdles that they've overcome and still struggle with. This relationship had so much depth and interest. A father figure who one loves but still disappoints, still has flaws; a son who is dear to oneself, but kind of ineffectual and in danger... Oh, this could have been a brilliant movie.

Instead, we get a low-gear love triangle with some loveable leads and likeable characters. They're clever, fun, and attractive enough to make me enjoy the film, but the glimpses at better movies that this screenplay keeps dividing itself between make the ride a little lackluster, even if it is reasonably enjoyable.

Oh, but Tony Shalhoub's one scene is brilliant. His line, "Figure out what you want and learn how to ask for it," is genuinely great advice.

Oh, and Kathryn Hahn turned in one of the funniest side-character performances I've seen in a long while.