The movie is centered on Cal, Steve Carell, and his wife and children. Cal’s wife, Emily reveals that she has been cheating on Cal and wants a divorce. Cal is dumbstruck and spends most of his nights at the bar alone until he meets Jacob, Ryan Gosling’s character, a notorious flirt. Jacob helps Cal pick up women at the bar and teaches him some of his classic flirtatious tricks.

Jacob is known for not getting attached and only having “flings” until he becomes smitten with Hannah, played by Emma Stone. Hannah is hesitant at first because of Jacob’s reputation but she ends up really liking him too. They go on dates and actually recreate the “Dirty Dancing” lift with “I’ve Had the Time of My Life” playing in the back. It’s clear after this scene that these two are perfect for each other.

Because of Jacob’s new relationship with Hannah, he spends most of his time with her, abandoning Cal at the bar every night and dropping his mentoring gig.

As the film progresses, there are big reveals and huge character development. The movie does a great job at showing the struggles of infidelity, divorce, and forgiveness in Cal and Emily’s marriage. Although I was a little annoyed that Emily cheated on Cal and made it seem like his fault, Cal gets his happy ending as do most of the characters.

As a fan of “The Office,” it was interesting to see Steve Carell play a different role than his adored Michael Scott. I really loved how many characters were in this movie because it was so interesting seeing the different points of view. This is a must-watch if you are looking for a good laugh and are maybe a bit of a hopeless romantic like me.