get thee to a Redbox

In the grand tradition of Armageddon and Deep Impact (1998), Volcano and Dante's Peak (1997), and a bunch of other movies I'm neglecting to mention but which are outlined here, Hollywood brings us two movies with eerily similar themes/plotlines opening within weeks/months of each other.

Exhibit A: No Strings Attached



Exhibit B: Friends With Benefits


So which of these two gems am I most likely to pull out of a RedBox? Based solely on the trailers, I'm going to have to go with Friends With Benefits. I'll admit it, I laughed really, really hard at the "you fight like a hamster" bit of the No Strings Attached trailer. That might be the one and only time that I've laughed at anything Ashton Kutcher has said or done since he bid farewell to Kelso. (Unlike Salon writer Andrew O'Hehir, I am completely oblivious to what his headline writer calls his "massive star potential.") Oh yeah, and that song they're using? "Ours" by The Bravery, which, and I know this is hard to believe considering how angsty it sounds, is from the Eclipse soundtrack. And yes, I know the Eclipse soundtrack is actually very good, but I have to be derisive of it on principle.

In contrast, Friends With Benefits, explicitly references "Closing Time" by Semisonic, also known as the quasi-official song of the Class of 1998. So as a member of the Class of 1998, I'm like, contractually obligated to see this film. (Though not, oddly enough, to attend high school reunions.) Couple this with the explicitly dissing of Katherine Heigl, and I'm totally there.