Love Happens

It's hard to believe that a dashing man like Eckhart and a stunning woman like Aniston could have absolutely no chemistry, but there's no accounting for that enigmatic X-factor in cinema. To say that the leads' utter lack of spark seriously hampers LOVE HAPPENS is an understatement -- but, then again, the movie isn't really a romantic comedy. Frankly, it's unclear what genre the movie belongs in, as it's simultaneously an occasionally humorous look at grief therapy, a chronicle of the hypocritical individuals who become celebrity "healers," and a thoroughly boring examination of the start of a rebound relationship.

Despite feeling overly long and dramatically uneven, Love Happens does feature a couple of stand-out supporting performances. Judy Greer adds another notch to her "quirky best friend" belt as Eloise's slam-poet employee, and Dan Fogler brings the laughs as Burke's manager. Martin Sheen is affecting as Burke's angry former father-in-law, although the movie doesn't really deserve an actor of his magnitude. Most frustrating of all is a wordless cameo from two Battlestar Galactica actors (only BSG fans will recognize them) who pop up in an extended sequence for no real reason. It's only worth mentioning because if their on-screen presence was supposed to be funny ... it wasn't. The puzzling cameo is slightly pleasant but ultimately confusing and insignificant -- just like the film itself.