For a Good Time Call

I'll put my hands up and admit that I didn't have a clue what this film was about. Starring Ari Graynor (known for appearing in various romcoms...), Justin Long and Seth Rogen, For A Good Time Call provides the audience with a fairly generic setup. A tenant with no money must find a roommate in order to cover her rent, and that very roommate has just been kicked out of her partner by her now-ex boyfriend. Cue various disagreements, bitchiness and polarising lifestyles, until the two discover that they would well as a partnership in maintaining a sex phone line.

For as arduous and long-winded as I've made the premise sound, it's actually very straightforward and Lauren Miller plays off Graynor well throughout, with its various twists, love interests and job offers working out as you'd expect. The two big twists - namely that Katie is a virgin, and that Lauren takes the job she promised she wouldn't - are overlooked because of the nature of their mutual love, in fairly predictable rom-com style, and so the film loses a lot of depth in the way those moments pan out. In fact, one point in the film points to a possible breakdown in the whole business idea, but this is immediately glossed over and doesn't actually seem to have an impact. Which is weird. And pointless.

Both women are attractive in their own way, and they suit their roles extremely well, but the film doesn't really try to do anything other than reinforce the idea that true love between friends trumps - or indeed supports - life's big dramas. Justin Long plays the gay best friend, a role he is worryingly convincing in playing, and Seth Rogen plays arguably his smallest role to date, and is in my opinion appallingly underused.

For A Good Time Call doesn't excel at anything, and doesn't really challenge pre-existing stereotypes. The subject matter means it's not exactly a film you'd want to watch with your family, owing to its fairly graphic - if only verbally - nature, so in a sense it's not a very accessible film. However, it's a fun way to waste 90 minutes and it's always interesting whenever Justin Long (or Seth Rogen) is involved.

7/10