Fun and quirky, "It's Complicated" stars Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin. They all offer some of the most outstanding moments of their careers. Streep is intoxicating, beautiful and sexy at sixty; Baldwin disarmingly charming; and Martin is quietly enchanting, and funny all the while.

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I can't remember the last time I laughed so much in a movie theatre.

Fun and quirky, It's Complicated, which opened on Dec. 25th, stars Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin. They all offer some of the most outstanding moments of their careers.

Streep is intoxicating, beautiful and sexy at sixty; Baldwin disarmingly charming; Martin is quietly enchanting and funny all the while.

It's written and directed by Nancy Meyers, (Something's Gotta Give, The Holiday, Irreconcilable Differences, Father of the Bride, Private Benjamin.)

There's a bit of sizzling sex, a little pot smoking, and a lot of cherchez la femme and paramour du jour hilarity, especially for boomers willing to laugh at themselves and their foibles.

The plot (from the movie website):

Jane Adler (Streep) is the mother of three grown kids, owns a thriving Santa Barbara bakery/restaurant and has -- after a decade of divorce -- an amicable relationship with her ex-husband, attorney Jake (Baldwin). But when Jane and Jake find themselves out of town for their son's college graduation, things start to get complicated. An innocent meal together leads to several bottles of wine, which in turn becomes a laugh-filled evening of memories about their 19-year marriage... and then to an impulsive affair. With Jake remarried to the much younger Agness (Lake Bell), Jane is now, of all things, the other woman. Caught in the middle of this renewed romance is Adam (Martin), an architect hired to remodel Jane's kitchen. Also divorced, Adam starts to fall for Jane, but soon realizes he's become part of an unusual love triangle.

John Krasinski (Jim Halpert on NBC's hit comedy The Office) offers some extraordinarily funny moments in his juicy, supporting role as Harley, Lauren's fiancée.

The ex-couple's grown children are played by Caitlin Fitzgerald (Taking Woodstock, A Jersey Christmas) as Lauren, Zoe Kazan (Revolutionary Road, I Hate Valentine's Day) as Gabby and Hunter Parrish (17 Again, television's Weeds) as Luke.

Streep's closest friends (and romantic advisors) are Rita Wilson (Old Dogs, Sleepless in Seattle) as Trisha; Mary Kay Place (Julie & Julia, television's Big Love) as Joanne; Alexandra Wentworth (Office Space, television's Head Case) as Diane; and Nora Dunn (Pineapple Express, Bruce Almighty) as Sally.

The "R" rating is apparently for the pot smoking, as the frontal nudity was humorously and thankfully camouflaged. (Or, did I hear the "f" word once?)

Streep has received 15 Academy Award nominations, more than any other actress, and won two. (Katherine Hepburn received 12 nominations, and won four.)

Streep also has 25 Golden Globe nominations to her credit, and won six. She's up against stiff competition at the Globes this year: herself! She's been nominated for both It's Complicated and Julie & Julia. (The Oscars don't allow actors to be nominated twice in one category, but the Globes don't have that restriction.)

In Katharine Hepburn had it coming; will Meryl Streep match her Oscar nod record? (Feb. 13, 2009), Katherine Monk says,

... consider Hepburn's four Best Actress wins: Her first win in was for Morning Glory (1933) came as a young ingenue, without a single previous nod. Her next statue came more than 30 years and nine nominations later for Stanley Kramer's Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? (1967). Her third statue came one year later for The Lion in Winter (1968), a film that many assumed would be one of her last. Yet, a little more than a decade after her non-retirement, Hepburn found glory once more with a win for On Golden Pond (1981).

... some of Hepburn's best work was completely glossed over in her prime because she'd already landed a prize. Classic performances in Woman of the Year, The Philadelphia Story, The African Queen, Suddenly, Last Summer and Long Day's Journey Into Night went unheralded because there was a sense of déja vu.

By the time Hepburn hit 60 years of age, however, the Academy probably had a little more sympathy for the woman once dubbed "box office poison" and lifted the emotional Hepburn embargo to recognize her work in Kramer's race-themed comedy. Meryl Streep turns 60 this June (2009), and just like Hepburn, a lot of her best work has been glossed over since her last win in 1982 as Best Actress for Sophie's Choice (her only other Oscar is a Best Supporting Actress win for 1979's Kramer vs. Kramer.

I loved Streep's triangle d'amour interactions with Baldwin and Martin in this film, and I hope she leaves the Academy Awards with a third fellow - a little, naked, golden one. She deserves it.

RESOURCES

http://itscomplicatedmovie.com/ Accessed Dec . 28, 2009.

Katharine Hepburn had it coming; will Meryl Streep match her Oscar nod record? by Katherine Monk, Canwest News Service, Feb. 13, 2009. Accessed Dec. 28, 2009.

http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/Katharine+Hepburn+coming+will+Meryl+Streep+match+Oscar+record/1287577/story.html

Authors Website: http://www.OceanViewArts.com

Authors Bio:

Meryl Ann Butler is an artist, author, educator and OpedNews Managing Editor who has been actively engaged in utilizing the arts as stepping-stones toward joy-filled wellbeing since she was a hippie. She began writing for OpEdNews in Feb, 2004. She became a Senior Editor in August 2012 and Managing Editor in January, 2013. In June, 2015, the combined views on her articles, diaries and quick link contributions topped one million. She was particularly happy that her article about Bree Newsome removing the Confederate flag was the one that put her past the million mark.

Her art in a wide variety of media can be seen on her YouTube video, "Visionary Artist Meryl Ann Butler on Creativity and Joy" at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcGs2r_66QE

A NYC native, her response to 9-11 was to pen an invitation to healing through creativity, entitled, "90-Minute Quilts: 15+ Projects You Can Stitch in an Afternoon" (Krause 2006), which is a bestseller in the craft field. The sequel, MORE 90-Minute Quilts: 20+ Quick and Easy Projects With Triangles and Squares was released in April, 2011. Her popular video, How to Stitch a Quilt in 90 Minutes with Meryl Ann Butler can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrShGOQaJQ8

She has been active in a number of international, arts-related projects as a citizen diplomat, and was arts advisor to Baltimore's CIUSSR (Center for Improving US-Soviet Relations), 1987-89. She made two trips to the former USSR in 1987 and 1988 to speak to artists, craftpeople and fashion designers on the topic of utilizing the arts as a tool for global wellbeing. She created the historical "First US-Soviet Children's Peace Quilt Exchange Project" in 1987-88, which was the first time a reciprocal quilt was given to the US from the former USSR.

Her artwork is in collections across the globe.

Meryl Ann is a founding member of The Labyrinth Society and has been building labyrinths since 1992. She publishes an annual article about the topic on OpEdNews on World Labyrinth Day, the first Saturday in May.

OpEdNews Senior Editor Joan Brunwasser interviewed Meryl Ann in "Beyond Surviving: How to Thrive in Challenging Times" at https://www.opednews.com/articles/Beyond-Surviving--How-to-by-Joan-Brunwasser-Anxiety_Appreciation_Coronavirus_Creativity-200318-988.html

Find out more about Meryl Ann's artistic life in "OEN Managing Ed, Meryl Ann Butler, Featured on the Other Side of the Byline" at https://www.opednews.com/Quicklink/OEN-Managing-Ed-Meryl-Ann-in-Life_Arts-Artistic_Artists_Quilt-170917-615.html

On Feb 11, 2017, Senior Editor Joan Brunwasser interviewed Meryl Ann in Pink Power: Sister March, Norfolk, VA at http://www.opednews.com/articles/Pink-Power-Sister-March--by-Joan-Brunwasser-Pussy-Hats-170212-681.html

"Creativity and Healing: The Work of Meryl Ann Butler" by Burl Hall is at
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Creativity-and-Healing--T-by-Burl-Hall-130414-18.html

Burl and Merry Hall interviewed Meryl Ann on their BlogTalk radio show, "Envision This," at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/envision-this/2013/04/11/meryl-ann-butler-art-as-a-medicine-for-the-soul

Archived articles www.opednews.com/author/author1820.html
Older archived articles, from before May 2005 are here.