Stuck In Love - A First Time For Many

Meet the Borgens. William Borgens is an acclaimed author who hasn't written a word since his ex-wife Erica left him 3 years ago for another man. In between spying on Erica and casual romps with his married neighbor Tricia, Bill is dealing with the complexities of raising his teenage children Samantha and Rusty. Samantha is publishing her first novel and is determined to avoid love at all costs - after all she's seen what it has done to her parents. In between hook ups, she meets "nice guy" Lou who will stop at nothing to win her over. Rusty, is an aspiring fantasy writer and Stephen King aficionado, who is on a quest to gain 'life experiences'. He falls for the beautiful, but troubled Kate and gets his first taste of love and a broken heart. A tale of family, love (lost and found), and how endings can make new beginnings. There are no rewrites in life, only second chances.  

Run Time: 97 min. Comedy/Drama  Directed By: Josh Boone

There was so many reasons to be excited about screening "Stuck In Love."  Not the least of which is it gave me my first crack at a celebrity interview.  I was given the opportunity to sit down with Liana Liberato and Patrick Schwarzenegger (yes, THAT Schawarzenegger!) , young co-stars in the movie.  

You can see the interview on Live at Five, Friday July 5, 2013, only on KQTV.  I am sure you will find them as charming as I did when I met them.  They both seem wise beyond their years and are extremely professional and driven.  It was such a pleasure to meet with them and talk about the making of "Stuck In Love".

Speaking of which:

Stuck In Love is a hopeful little movie.  You find yourself really REALLY cheering for the characters as they find their way through the mess that is their lives.  It does a great job of reminding us that no one's family is perfect - even though they may appear otherwise. First time director Josh Boone is a master at taking us all through the same experiences, yet letting us travel in different characters' footsteps.  Dad (Greg Kinnear) is waiting patiently for his ex-wife (Jennifer Connelly) to come to her senses, yet he shows us he is only human with his daily "appointment" with his married neighbor (Kristen Bell,  adorable as always).

We sidestep through the mine-field that is first time love with son Rusty (Nat Wolff).    Just as we start to feel that sweet memory of our own first love, the roller coaster takes a sharp turn as we see love through the very jaded eyes of daughter Samantha (Lily Collins).  And just as I LOVED Logan Lerman in "Perks", I adored him in this movie as Lou - the person I was rooting for the most.

The soundtrack was great, which included this 

It all  feels very authentic, like peeping through the windows of any home in America.  You will fall in love with the Borgens, at least one of them.  You will especially want the romance of Rusty and Kate (played beautifully by Liana Liberato) to weather the storm.  You will be proud of the adults who step in to to help these young lovers.  

The Borgens are very passionate people who in the end, do things that will surprise you.  And make you want for more.

The best line of the movie?  "A writer is the sum of your experiences.  Go get you some."

I think that is what made me love this movie so much - it makes you feel like it is okay to take chances - it is okay to hang on to hope as long as you want to.  It's your story after all, isn't it?