Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.

Since I saw Little Miss Sunshine two years ago, Abigail Breslin has been on my radar, so the previews for Definitely, Maybe caught my eye several months ago, but not enough for me to make sure I saw the movie in the theater. Definitely enough, however, to sit down and watch it on DVD with my friend over the weekend, at which point I realized that the romantic comedy, written and directed by Adam Brooks, may showcase Breslin but isn't really what I would call a kids' movie. For adults, however, it's a sweet film about relationships, both of the parental and romantic variety.

After a very long opening credits sequence following Will Hayes (Ryan Reynolds) around town to the tune of his iPod, the film introduces us to his daughter, Maya (Breslin), whose school is in chaos because her class has just gotten a frank lesson on the birds and the bees. For several uncomfortable minutes, prepare to hear a bunch of ten-year-olds shouting out anatomical facts and questions, particularly Maya, who is driven by this discussion to intense curiosity about her dad's romantic life in the years before her birth. After much cajoling, she convinces her dad to tell her about his old girlfriends (with name changes), hoping that she will be able to figure out which ended up becoming her mother - and that she will be happy with the answer.

This reminded me a bit of The Princess Bride, as most of the scenes framing Will's flashbacks occur in Maya's bedroom, and every once in a while she jolts us back into the present with comments and queries. One outburst toward the end of the film is especially reminiscent of Fred Savage's exasperated string of questions about the fate of nefarious Prince Humperdinck. Of course, the tale is not a fantasy, and unlike the lad in that classic, Maya is keenly interested in "the kissing parts". With her parents undergoing a divorce, she wants to believe that her dad's love can be rekindled, whether or not it's with her mother.

Most of the movie is set at various point in the 90s. We first see Will as a grunt member of Bill Clinton's campaign team; eventually he opens a consulting business with his gregarious best buddy. It's strange to be looking back upon the 90s as a distinct historical era, defined in part by headlines I remember about Clinton's extramarital escapades. Other signs of the decade include movie ads and songs on the radio, and it's interesting to watch how one particular favorite haunt of Will's changes in the course of a few years.

Will comes to New York City from the Midwest with bright-eyed ideals and lofty dreams of becoming president one day. He leaves behind his sweetheart Emily (Elizabeth Banks), promising he'll only be away a short time. Upon her request, he makes a delivery to artsy Summer (Rachel Weisz), who puts the moves on him although she is in a relationship of her own. Meanwhile, he befriends outspoken copy girl April (Isla Fisher). As the film progresses, these three women drop in and out of his life, leaving the true identity of Maya's mother up in the air. The three actresses do a good job of making the characters distinct. Banks has a buttoned-up, girl-next-door sort of quality, while Weisz is off-beat and slightly dangerous and Fisher, who I could have sworn was Amy Adams until the credits rolled, brings a spunky yet sweet quality to her role.

I like the close relationship between Will and Maya, and the romantic storylines are pretty engaging and kept me guessing - though unlike in Mamma Mia!, another film that dredges up three long-ago significant others, I figured out pretty early which romantic prospect I was rooting for. Because of the heavy use of Breslin in the previews, I think the movie was inappropriately geared toward kids her age; while the movie isn't exactly filthy, there is plenty of innuendo and some blunt discussion of adult behavior. So don't rent it for your kids, but if you like a good romance and you don't mind the storytelling framework, Definitely, Maybe is maybe, definitely worth a look.

Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD