Review: THEY CAME TOGETHER, a clever and zany parody of romantic comedies

Even the simplest of comedies or romantic stories can end up being ignored at the worldwide box office; or in the case of David Wain’s They Came Together, avoid theatrical release entirely in places like my home country of Peru, relegated to formats such as Netflix, where they hope to find a new audience. Well, that it did, and although I initially watched it without any expectations, I ended up being enamored by the movie. What it lacks in complexity or originality, it more than makes up for in sheer charm and hilarity.

Being a parody of romantic comedies, They Came Together might seem like a tired concept on paper, but it works surprisingly well on screen. Films like the awful Date Movie —which instead of satirizing the unintentionally funny tropes of the genre, preferred to throw a bunch of sex and bathroom jokes at its audience, as well as dated pop culture references— and the hilarious 40-year-old virgin —which was more of a reinterpretation of the genre than a full-blown parody— have touched on the subject, but They Came Together outdoes both in a more straightforward and ridiculous manner. Experiencing the film is like watching an old ZAZ (Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker) comedy, with dozens of jokes a minute, sight gags and an uneven tone.

Amy Poehler plays Molly, “the cute, klutzy girl who drives you a little bit crazy, but you can’t help but fall in love with.” She owns a small bakery in New York City called “Upper Sweet Side” (har har) which is being threatened by a multi-million dollar conglomerate named CSR, Candy Systems Research (of course). Paul Rudd plays Joel, “handsome, but in a non-threatening way,” and “vaguely, but not overtly Jewish.” He works for CSR, which means both our protagonists start their story hating each other, only for them to eventually fall in love. Complications arise, they fight, they kiss and make up, and they have their happy ending. It’s all one could hope from a picture of this sort, but presented with its tongue firmly set in its cheek.

Like most movies influenced by the work of ZAZ, jokes are very frequent, but they’re also hit-or-miss. Usually, the gags that directly parody the tropes of the genre are the most successful; consider the way a conversation between Joel and his immature baby brother, Jake (the always charming Max Greenfield, from New Girl) ends —“thaaaanks…”— or a basketball “game” between Joel and his friends, each wearing the clothes of the stereotype they’re representing, and uttering lines that relate only to Joel’s problems and the film's plot; “Being married is great! That’s the point of view I represent!” It’s all very fun and clever, maybe even a little too clever for its own good.

By this, I mean some of the jokes feel more like throwaway lines referencing classic romantic comedies —fortunately, most of them are said during the dinner scene between Joel and Molly and another couple, played by a cynical Bill Hader and an energetic Ellie Kemper, which serves as the narrative backbone of the whole thing— or are shown in too obvious a manner. But no matter. Since gags come and go with such frequency, every time one of them falls flat, there’s a funnier, cleverer one ‘round the corner.

Unlike recent parodies, such as the work of the insufferable Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer (of Epic Movie and Disaster Movie infamy), They Came Together feels like more than a collection of gags and pratfalls. There’s a genuine story that pays homage to famous romantic comedies such as You’ve Got Mail and Sleepless in Seattle, the protagonists share quite a bit of chemistry, and although most of the dialogue they exchange is either played for laughs or done with a little wink towards the audience, one nevertheless has the feeling they actually love each other. There’s a very fine line between parody and mockery, and fortunately, They Came Together never crosses it.

Paul Rudd plays his part with enviable sincerity —yes, he does imply from time to time that he’s aware of all the ridiculousness around him, but at the same time he sells the romance between Amy Poehler and himself. No doubt he was remembering all the times he’s played a romantic lead while shooting the film. For her part, Amy Poehler is a little crazier and cartoonish, which contrasts well with Rudd’s more restrained energy. Max Greenfield is hilarious as Joel’s brother Jake; Cobie Smulders is the perfectly bitchy femme fatale; Ed Helms is both pathetic and funny as Eggbert (quite inevitable when you have that name) and Christopher Meloni is excellent as Roland, Joel’s boss (and stars in a surprisingly humorous bathroom scene, which lampoons the fact that even the corniest of romantic comedies must include poop jokes, for some reason).

They Came Together is a pleasant surprise, a picture that looks bland and generic as a thumbnail on my Netflix feed, but that works precisely because it’s parodying movies of that sort. Yes, some of the jokes are obvious —at one point, Joel and Molly mention that New York City was like a third character in their love story (because one can’t make a film of this sort without at least referencing Woody Allen), and that if their romance were a movie, it would start with an aerial shot of the New York skyline; and sure enough, that’s precisely what we see next. But it’s funny, it's charming, it’s well acted, and it’s the sort of picture cinephiles like myself love watching because we’ve seen too many romantic comedies, and it was about time someone pointed out their clichés, dammit!

But most importantly, it never feels like it’s hating on popular movies like When Harry Met Sally or Annie Hall; if anything, They Came Together makes one want to watch some of these classics. It was clearly made by a fan (or at least someone who appreciates them), which may be why it works so well.