It’s a common cliche of both romantic comedies and romantic dramas: The one you’re meant to be with might be the friend you’ve taken for granted all along. Unfortunately, that’s not the only well-worn trope used in “One Day,” though it is indeed a rare film: one made by a talented director and clever writer with two beguiling actors that isn’t particularly engaging. Emma (Anne Hathaway) and Dexter (Jim Sturgess) spend their first day together on July 15, 1988. The two Brits graduated the day before from the University of Edinburgh, and after an evening of drinking with friends, go home together. A clumsy attempt at going to bed follows and the pair decide to be just friends. But relations between a man and a woman are rarely that uncomplicated — especially when one begins the friendship with feelings for the other.
We reconnect with Emma and Dexter each year on July 15, witnessing the ups and downs of their careers, their relationships and their friendship. Dexter is the scion of a wealthy family and travels the world before settling down in London to a career as a highly paid television presenter. Emma comes from a working-class background and has ambitions of changing the world with her writing, but ends up as a waitress in a Tex-Mex restaurant, where she introduces herself to new blood with “Welcome to the graveyard of ambition.”
| On screen |
| ‘One Day’ |
| 2.5 out of 5 stars |
| Stars: Anne Hathaway, Jim Sturgess |
| Director: Lone Scherfig |
| Rated: PG-13 for sexual content, partial nudity, language, some violence and substance abuse |
| Running time: 108 minutes |
It’s clear from the beginning that Emma has always liked Dexter. She lights up when he tells her one night, while they vacation in France, that he’s felt something similar. But then the playboy adds “The problem is, I pretty much fancy everyone. It’s like I just got out of prison all the time.”
It’s easy to see why Emma falls in love. Dexter — and the man who plays him — is incredibly charming at first, with an easy confidence that still allows him to poke fun at his privilege. But it doesn’t last. As Dexter succumbs to the drugs and girls that come with fame, he gets more and more obnoxious. By the time it appears that these two might finally get together — after a marriage, a childbirth, and a divorce — you can’t possibly understand why she’d still want to.
It’s not the fault of Sturgess or Hathaway, who are as appealing as ever. We’re meant to see Emma and Dexter as opposites who attract, yet we learn nothing about Emma’s family or formative years. We just know, from the odd joke, that her people don’t have as much money as Dexter’s. These characters lack depth, which makes it hard to credit their transformation.
Screenwriter David Nicholls, adapting his own novel, also wrote the likable comedy “Starter for Ten.” Director Lone Scherfig made the intelligent drama “An Education.” Let’s hope “One Day” is just a single aberration in two capable careers.
