Save the Date (I) (2012)
9/10
Not a Rom-Com
12 August 2016
There is something I need to point out first: I normally reserve the 10 stars for films I consider absolute masterpieces, meaning I do not give them away lightly. But in this case I felt the urge to counter the ridiculously low rating it has got here. If this wasn't so unjust, I would give it 7 stars.

When it comes to Save the Date, it is one of those films where I read the reviews and wonder if I have seen the same film as the critics. Apart from the at best average ratings it is constantly described as just another by-the-numbers rom-com. However, Save the Date has definitely more depth than this assertion would have you believe.

Following a young woman - Sarah played by Lizzie Caplan - who walks out on her boyfriend's (Geoffrey Arend) marriage proposal in front of a whole crowd and then quickly falls in love again, the film depicts its characters and the emotional turmoil they go through in a very intimate way. It has some funny moments, but for the most part it is rather dramatic, culminating in a heart-breaking scene at the end brilliantly played out by Caplan and Alison Brie - magnificent as always- who plays her sister Beth.

Save the Date stands out for me, because the script is so masterfully brought to life by each actress and actor that you instantly feel involved in the scenes. It had me thinking I was really there and not just watching whether it was in rather lively settings like the bar where Sarah learns that she will get an exhibition for her drawings (which is one of the more implausible plot lines of the film as her drawings are very simplistic) or whether I witnessed Beth and her fiancé (Martin Starr) arguing about her behaviour towards Sarah. At every point of the film I was invested and I truly cared about the characters' fate, which just doesn't happen with standard rom-coms marked by flat characters and predictable plots. I am happy to have stumbled upon this indie gem.
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