Title: Like Crazy Director: Drake Doremus Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Studio: Paramount Vantage Genre(s): Drama Rated:         (For sexual content and brief strong language)

CONSUMER ADVICE

Parents, there are several scenes of sexuality as well as some minor language. Recommended for ages 15 and up.

There is a scene late in the movie where Anna (Felicity Jones) calls her boyfriend Jacob (Anton Yelchin). He's in America and she's in England. She suggests that the two of them get married. He wants to but is reluctant. They met in America during school and instantly fell in love, but a problem with her travel visa means that she is now banned from going to America. Their relationship in “Like Crazy” is just that: They love each other like crazy. So much so that they are willing to start and stop their relationship several times throughout the years. They see other people, but bring up the topic of sex and everything turns sour. That they seem to move on relatively easy suggests they possess true love but…I don't know it still seems crazy to me.

Let me tell you a story: I fell in love with a girl during an internship I did a few years ago. We never officially dated (even though I tried to get it to that stage), but we were extremely close. She moved back to her state and we kept in touch, but distance is a tough thing in relationships. Life moves on. No love/friendship can truly sustain itself when there is so much distance between two people. At the same time though I still think of her quite often. I look at a picture of us at a special event we went to and wish we could still be like that. Part of me knows that if we were to get together anytime soon though, things just wouldn't be the same.

“Like Crazy” captures that feeling of first love so perfectly it hurts. Most of us will never be forcefully separated to the degree that these two people are, but opportunities will always arise. At several points Anna suggests that since Jason CAN travel to England then maybe he can live there instead! That sounds great of course, but the reality is that his business is in America and uprooting yourself isn't so easy. Besides, there's a girl there he's seeing, and she's special in her own way. Anna might always have a place in his heart…but who's to say he won't be happy if he marries this new girl? Does this sound unromantic? Sorry, true love and reality doesn't always mix very well.

The brilliance in the screenplay for “Like Crazy” is that it recognizes first love as a real curse. When you find that special person they will be with you in your heart to some extent for the rest of your life. But life won't always work out the way you want it to and you have to settle for something else. Sometimes it's even better when you do. So I leave you with this thought: At the end of the film the characters get everything they ever wanted and dreamed for when they were young. But are they happy? Did they hold onto initial happiness too long for it to have any meaningful long term value? Oh, and don't look to me for the answer to this. I'm still trying to figure out if I'm happy to have met that girl or if that was the start of a prolonged tragedy.