2003 film by Nancy Meyers
Something's Gotta Give is a 2003 American romantic comedy drama film written, produced, and directed by Nancy Meyers. It stars Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton as professionals who find love for each other in later life, despite being complete opposites. Keanu Reeves and Amanda Peet co-star, with Frances McDormand, Paul Michael Glaser, Jon Favreau, and KaDee Strickland playing key supporting roles.
"Something's Gotta Give" received positive reviews from critics, with praise directed towards Keaton and Nicholson's performances. The film emerged as a major commercial success at the box-office, grossing $266 million worldwide against a production budget of $80 million.
For her performance, Keaton received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress, the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role. At the 61st Golden Globe Awards, Keaton won Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, while Nicholson received a nomination for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.
Plot.
Harry Sanborn is a wealthy NYC record company owner who only dates women under 30, including his latest girlfriend, Marin Klein. The two drive to her mother's Hamptons beach house, expecting to be alone. However her mother, the playwright Erica Barry, and Erica's sister Zoe unexpectedly arrive.
After an awkward dinner, the night turns disastrous when—during foreplay with Marin—Harry has a heart attack and is rushed to a hospital. The attending doctor, Julian Mercer, tells him to stay nearby for a few days, so he reluctantly stays with Erica.
Their personalities clash and create awkward living arrangements at first, but they soon find charming qualities in each other and begin to form a connection. Harry's relationship with her daughter and Erica's budding relationship with Julian become obstacles to their growing attraction.
Marin tells her mother that she will break up with Harry, but he ends things first. He and Erica spend more time together and eventually have sex. Julian tells Harry he has improved enough to return to the city. He and Erica share an awkward goodbye, as despite their strong feelings, Harry is clearly hesitant to enter into a relationship.
Marin receives news that her father, and Erica's ex-husband, Dave Klein is getting remarried, to a doctor who is only two years older than she. Though Erica is unaffected by the news, Marin is devastated and pressures her mother into accompanying her to a dinner.
At dinner, Erica sees Harry at another table with a much younger woman. An argument follows and Erica confesses that she is in love with him, but he does not seem to reciprocate, so she ends things between them and leaves. Harry suffers from what he believes is another heart attack, but in the emergency room he is told it was a panic attack.
Devastated, Erica returns home where she cries almost nonstop for several weeks. She pours her heartbreak into a new play about a woman who falls in love with her daughter's boyfriend, titling it "A Woman to Love," a phrase Harry had used to describe Erica. Harry hears about the play and rushes to the theater, where it is being rehearsed.
Despite her denials, it is obvious that Erica has used the most personal details of their affair in the play. When Harry tells her he still cares about her, she rebuffs him. After learning his character dies in the play, he suffers another panic attack. At the hospital, he is told he needs to de-stress, and he relocates temporarily to the Bahamas.
Six months later, Erica's play is a huge success. Harry pays Marin a visit to apologize for any past disrespect, and discovers that she is now happily married and pregnant. She informs him that Erica is in Paris celebrating her birthday. Harry flies there and surprises Erica at her favorite restaurant. He tells her he has been reaching out to all the young women he had affairs with in an attempt to atone for his heartless behavior. Julian, whom Erica is now dating, appears.
Harry, Erica and Julian have dinner together, and part amicably outside the restaurant. While Harry gazes in heartache over the river Seine, Erica arrives. She tells him that Julian realized she still loves Harry and decided to step aside to let them be together. He tells her that at age 63, he is in love for the first time in his life, and they embrace.
A year later at a restaurant, the now married Erica and Harry are out with Marin, her husband Danny and their new baby daughter, celebrating life as a loving family.
Soundtrack.
The soundtrack was released on February 23, 2004, by Columbia Records. As of 2004, the soundtrack has sold 172,000 copies in United States.
Track listing.
The film was originally scored by Alan Silvestri and orchestrated by Tony Blondal, however creative differences led to Silvestri being replaced at the last minute by members of Remote Control Productions. As Silvestri's music was already recorded, some of it remains in the film.
Reception.
Critical response.
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, "Something's Gotta Give" holds an approval rating of 72% based on 171 reviews, with an average rating of 6.60/10. The site's critics consensus reads: "Though it occasionally stumbles into sitcom territory, "Something's Gotta Give" is mostly a smart, funny romantic comedy, with sharp performances from Jack Nicholson, Diane Keaton and Keanu Reeves." On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 66 out of 100, based on 40 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "A−" on scale of A to F.
Mick LaSalle, writing for the "San Francisco Chronicle", felt the performances of the film's stars, Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson, were among their best, and that Nicholson's acting, as his role covered a wider range of emotions, was the more complex. The reviewer praised the film for being a romantic comedy for adults:
 ;templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" / ;The adult romance is a dying genre in our era, but movies as wise and fun as "Something's Gotta Give" have always been rare. It's a comedy with hilarious moments, and yet with an essential seriousness at its core: Two people in the autumn of life find love.
Roger Ebert describes the film's dialogue as "smart". Although noting that Keanu Reeves's role "seems like nothing more than a walking plot complication", he praises the performances of Keaton and Nicholson: "A movie like this depends crucially on its stars. To complain that Nicholson is playing "himself" – or that Keaton is also playing a character very much like her public persona – is missing the point. Part of the appeal depends on the movie's teasing confusion of reality and fiction."
Accolades.
The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:
Home media.
"Something's Gotta Give" was released on VHS on June 8, 2004 and DVD on March 30, 2004 by Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment and Warner Home Video.
References.
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