Love Happens Review

Love Happens
Eckhart plays a widower whose book about coping with loss turns him into a self-help guru. But when he meets Eloise (Aniston) at one of his seminars, he realises he isn't over his own grief.

by Anna Smith |
Published on
Release Date:

09 Oct 2009

Running Time:

109 minutes

Certificate:

12A

Original Title:

Love Happens

Aaron Eckhart is Burke, a widowed self help guru who’s ‘A-OK!’ on the outside, crumbling on the inside. Jennifer Anniston is florist Eloise, who does quirky things like write random words on the walls behind paintings.

Alas, Eloise’s eccentricity is as unconvincing as the attraction between the two of them — Aniston’s performance is unremarkable, and Eckhart is missing his usual slick charisma. Still, Burke’s an intriguing enough character: refusing to take lifts and secretly swigging vodka, he feels guilty about his success in the wake of his wife’s death.

Had his story been explored in depth, this might have worked; the romance feels like an intrusion. That the most moving scenes are between Eckhart and father-in-law Martin Sheen tells you everything.

Falls between romance and drama without really satisfying either.
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