Definitely, Maybe

Definitely, Maybe starts off with Van Wilder doing a voiceover, before clicking over to a classic track and introducing the character’s precocious daughter. Egads. Will Hayes (Ryan Reynolds) then tells a bedtime story to his daughter Maya (Abigail Breslin). Through a series of flashbacks the ad exec on the eve of his divorce recounts the story of how he met the girl’s mother. It’s not just a story, but three: three stories of complicated women who have been in his life. He’s not exactly a reliable narrator, and we’re never quite sure who he’ll end up settling with in the end. But the journey is clever and unpredictable and, well … romantic and funny. Here, Reynolds is charming and amusing without being reptilian or vacant, the big problem with actors of his generation. He’s matched more than ably by Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Weisz and Isla Fisher as the trio of potential lights of his life. Each one more than convinces us that she should be the one, despite logical sense that it probably wouldn’t be such a good idea in the long run. Like in life.