Down With Love is over the top, cheesy, and rife with cliches. That's also the entire point of the film. Writers Eve Ahlert and Dennis Drake crafted the skeleton of a throwback Rock Hudson/Doris Day battle of the sexes madcap comedy and then subvert it every step of the way with clever spins on the romantic comedy formula. In 1962, small town girl Barbara Novak arrives in NYC a week before her debut feminist book Down With Love is going to be published. The all-male marketing department of the publisher have no interest in promoting the text, so Barbara and her agent Vikki Hiller have to do it themselves. They arrange an interview with notorious womanizer Catcher Block for the largest male leisure magazine in the world. After being blown off three meetings in a row, Vikki and Barbara double down on the independent message of Down With Love and find success on their own terms. Barbara destroys Catcher's reputation in the process, sending him into a twisted plot to restore his own status in the world. Who will wind up on top in a battle between the new and old guard of the non-fiction publishing industry?
Down With Love is all about design and betraying expectations. The art direction is phenomenal. Bright pops of color and striking graphics fill every inch of the frame, establishing a visual reference for the battle of the sexes. It's far more nuanced than the pink and the blue of Barbara and Catcher's lives. Catcher is constantly surrounded by traditional designs and what the mainstream culture would define as hip for a bachelor. Barbara is framed in sleek minimalism and explosive touches of Mod and Beatnik counter-cultures wherever she goes. Their meetings swing back and forth between the two worlds as the balance of power shifts in the relationship.
There are a few moments in the film that perhaps take the tongue in cheek tribute to the old madcap romances a bit too far. For example, through a constantly shifting onscreen divider and tight editing, Barbara and Catcher simulate various sexual positions. It's just a bit too provocative in comparison to the more subtle approach the rest of the film takes.
Director Peyton Reed pushes the cast just a bit too far on occasion, creating tonally inconsistent moments of raunchy humor that would never appear in this style and period of film. It's a great period to draw inspiration from. You just can't establish the film as true to the time with a twist and then go that blue at key plot points for an extra laugh. It throws the film off-kilter every time it happens.
Down With Love is overall a sweet and funny diversion. Fans of madcap romantic comedies will find a lot to dig into in a mostly gentle send-up of the genre. A more film period-accurate approach to the material and staging would have made this soar.
Rating: 7/10
Thoughts on Down With Love? Share them below.