Trama

A guy and girl try to keep their relationship strictly physical, but it's not long before they learn that they want something more.

Occasionally in the 15 years since summer camp, Adam and Emma cross paths. When he discovers that an ex-girlfriend is living with his dad, he gets drunk, calls every woman in his cell phone contact list, and ends up passed out naked in her living room. By this time, she's a medical resident in L.A. and he's a gopher on a "Glee"-like TV series, hoping to be a writer. She guards her emotions (calling her father's funeral "a thing"), so after a quick shag in the moments she has before leaving for the hospital, she asks if he wants a no-strings-attached, sex-only relationship, without romance or complications. A prescription for fun or for disaster?—<jhailey@hotmail.com>

Adam (Ashton Kutcher) and Emma (Natalie Portman) met each other once at a school summer camp but never committed. Several years later and they meet again. Adam is now a writer and an assistant on a TV show and she's a doctor. When Adam discovers that his father Alvin (Kevin Kline), a washed-up actor, is having a relationship with his ex-girlfriend, he goes on an all-night bender. Waking up in Emma's house, he finds comfort in her and they have spontaneous sex too. They decide that they should restrict their relationship to this level as she isn't comfortable with dating. She decides to keep it a secret from her housemate's Patrice (Greta Gerwig) and Shira (Mindy Kaling). Typically, Adam feels left out by this demand and tries to develop the relationship into something more with the help of his friends Wallace (Ludacris) and Eli (Jake M. Johnson).—Biggest_Loser

Handsome, charming Adam never forgot about Emma, whom he met at summer camp, and bumps into now he's a TV show assistant aspiring a script writing career and she a hospital intern. Utterly drunk after another depressing stunt form his terribly selfish father, twice-divorced Hollywood has been Alvin, Adam is carried to her med students apartment, waking up naked and taunted being oblivious, yet a good and apologetic sport. Emma admits being incapable of any relationship but he accepts to become sex mates without strings, which works a while, rendering her flirtatious best mate Sam jealous, while their other friends try to coach the non-couple into becoming one. Irresistible Adam does everything right, yet her fear of romance keeps spoiling the fun of his date plans.—KGF Vissers

After first meeting at a summer camp as teenagers, Emma (Natalie Portman) and Adam (Ashton Kutcher) run into each other a few times when they're young adults but never manage to keep in touch. Now Emma's a resident at a hospital in Los Angeles and Adam's a production assistant for a musical television show. Adam's dad (Kevin Kline), the well-known star of a former hit television comedy series, has begun a relationship with Adam's ex-girlfriend, Vanessa (Ophelia Lovibond). When Adam finds out he gets drunk and starts calling the women in his cell phone directory seeking a hookup. The next morning, waking up with a hangover, he finds himself on a sofa wearing nothing-there's only a small towel covering his mid-body region. It turns out that he texted Emma and then came to the apartment she shares with some other residents-Patrice (Greta Gerwig), Shira (Mindy Kaling), and Guy (Guy Branum). Once he was there, he took off all his clothes and then passed out. Emma leads Adam to her bedroom to retrieve his missing pants and they end up having sex.

The second time they have sex they're at Adam's house, and before she leaves, he agrees to her proposal for a casual relationship (as she puts it, using each other for sex and nothing else-in other words, with no strings attached). He warns Emma that she'll fall in love with him, but she dismisses that idea and sets some ground rules to keep what they're doing from becoming too serious. At first things go well, but then Adam becomes jealous when Sam (Ben Lawson)-another hospital resident Emma works with-seeks her attention. Adam brings Emma a gift (a CD mix he's put together for her) and she rebuffs him, saying they should stop for a while and hook up with other people. But after being apart for two weeks Emma returns to Adam, and they continue being sex friends only.

A few months later in early February it's Adam's birthday. He has to go out for dinner with his dad and Vanessa-they announce their plan to have a baby together. Adam's brought Emma with him to the restaurant where she berates the other couple while defending Adam. He persuades her to go out together on Valentine's Day. Things fall apart when she becomes too uncomfortable during the date. An angry Emma advises Adam that he should find someone else who won't hurt him. Adam tells Emma that he loves her-something she's not at all receptive to hearing-and they have a fight. Their no strings attached arrangement ends.

Six weeks later a script Adam wrote for the television program he works on is being filmed. Adam gets a regular writing job on the show with the help of Lucy (Lake Bell)-she's the assistant to the show's director (Jennifer Irwin) and she's clearly attracted to Adam. Meanwhile, Emma's depressed-she's become distraught at not being with Adam. The situation's compounded and complicated by her younger sister Katie's (Olivia Thirlby) wedding the next day and her widowed mother (Talia Balsam) arriving for the event with a male companion (Brian Dierker) of her own. It turns out that Emma feels she's being strong for her mom by not letting herself get too close to anyone. This way her mom won't become upset by seeing Emma get hurt if a relationship ends poorly. Emma's mom tells her to stop doing that.

When Emma confesses that she can't stop thinking about Adam, Katie insists that her sister has to call him to start putting things right between them. So a nervous Emma phones Adam and lets him know that she misses him. His response is that they were never really together-she fails to win him back. Realizing now that she needs to speak with him in person, Emma leaves Santa Barbara-where the wedding's taking place the next day-and drives to Adam's house in Los Angeles. Her plans are ruined, however-and she has to hide to avoid being seen-when he arrives home with Lucy. Emma assumes Adam has a new girlfriend and tearfully drives away.

Vanessa calls Adam before he and Lucy can have sex-his dad's overdosed on a cough syrup-based drink. Meeting Adam outside the hospital, Vanessa says that she wants out of her relationship with his dad and then departs for a party. Adam goes in to visit his dad who surprisingly gives him some tender advice about falling in love.

Shira lets Emma know about Adam's dad being admitted to the hospital, so she drives there. As Adam leaves the building, he phones Emma to tell her that she has to be present if she's going to say that she misses him. Emma gets out of her car as the call ends and Adam's stunned to suddenly find her there to talk with him the way he wants. She tells Adam that she's sorry she hurt him, confesses that she loves him, and they reconcile with some passionate kissing. After eating breakfast together, the next morning-something that's never happened before-they arrive in Santa Barbara just before Katie's wedding is starting. As they enter a room and pause Emma asks Adam what will happen next, and with a lips-still-together smile he silently intertwines her hand with his-for the first time they're holding hands together as a loving couple.

Further events in the lives of the characters are shown during the initial ending credits. Adam's dad and Lucy are in a relationship, and they're in a restaurant waiting for Adam to arrive to let him know about it. Adam's roommate (Jake Johnson) and Patrice are in a relationship, and they're shown meeting his two gay dads. Vanessa told Adam that old people scare her, so she's ridden with anxiety when she's trapped in an elevator full of senior citizens. Adam and Emma are seen kissing in the park. Sam and Shira are in a relationship, but he wants his freedom and isn't pleased when she reveals that she's already been seeing other men. Katie's having a baby and Emma's the delivering doctor. Guy lures a nervous-looking Sam into a hospital room, presumably for an encounter between them. And finally, Adam and Emma are shown peacefully sleeping together, spooning while fully clothed.