Review: I Love You, Man

Those brilliant Judd Apatow regulars have done it again. Paul Rudd and Jason Segel keep the laughs coming in "I Love You, Man," which follows Rudd's Peter Klaven as he struggles to find a best man.

After proposing to his dream girl, Zooey (Rashida Jones), Peter is on top of the world. But after watching Zooey interact with her tight-knit group of girlfriends, he realizes he has no one to call his best man. Having moved around a lot as a kid and always relating more to women, Peter has never really had a best guy friend.

Determined not to leave Peter without a wedding party, his brother Robbie (Andy Samberg) sets him up on a series of "man-dates." After disastrous outings with Lonnie (Joe Lo Truglio), a man with a dreadful voice crack, and Doug (the hilarious Thomas Lennon), who thinks his "man-date" with Peter is a real date, Peter has almost lost hope.

Then he meets Sydney Fife (Jason Segel), a carefree guy who attends one of Peter's real estate open houses because he wants to meet girls and eat free food. Peter and Sydney are complete opposites, but after striking up a conversation, Peter decides Sydney may just be best man material.

The film follows their developing "bromance" as Sydney coaxes Peter out of his shell and Peter tries to encourage Sydney to take a little more responsibility in his life. The two develop such a strong bond that Peter must figure out how to balance spending time with his new friend and his new fiancee.

The plot is fairly predictable, but John Hamburg and Larry Levin's script is nevertheless refreshing and funny. The jokes are fast and right on target, making for a movie that is both funny and sweet.

Rudd and Segel have great chemistry, which makes their onscreen relationship enjoyable to watch. After strong supporting performances in "The 40-Year-Old-Virgin," "Knocked Up" and "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," it's nice to see the affable and charming Rudd step into a lead role.

"I Love You, Man" may not be quite on the same level of comedic brilliance as "Virgin," but it's still a feel-good film that offers viewers plenty of laughs. B+