Your Place or Mine (Netflix, 2023)
Your Place or Mine is a lighthearted romantic comedy starring Reese Witherspoon and Ashton Kutcher.
It’s the kind of movie that would have been a theatrical release (and quite probably a hit) even ten years ago, but now we only get to see it because it streams on Netflix. Which is not a judgement, but simply stating how the world works right now.
The movie itself is fine. Witherspoon plays Debbie, a Los Angeles-based accountant who dreams of being an editor. She is also a single mom who craves routine because her pre-teen son Jack suffers from a bunch of allergies and needs to be protected at all costs.
Kutcher plays her best friend Peter, a marketing executive who dreams of becoming a writer (and listens to The Cars all the time) but also lives a more exciting single life with some Crazy Ex-Girlfriends in New York.
Debbie and Peter had a one night fling many moons ago, but decided to stay friends after that, mainly because they saw each other as complete opposites.
But now, after years and years of friendship, they decide to swap houses for a week.
Debbie goes to New York to follow a class she needs to become a more successful accountant while Peter comes to LA to take care of Jack.
By living each other’s lives they find out more about themselves and each other than they ever imagined, and there’s just a tiny little chance that they finally figure out how to make their lives (either together or apart) work out for the best.
It’s classic romantic comedy stuff and you only need half a brain to figure out how this all will (happy) end, while also showing us that friendship can be the basis of a great relationship.
Having said that, the movie goes to great lengths to keep the two protagonists apart for most of the running time, so they spent a lot of time with the (rather large) supporting cast, while technology, modern or otherwise, ensures they can still keep in touch.
This bright and breezy movie is the work of writer and director Aline Brosh McKenna, who is a creator of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and has also written movies like The Devil Wears Prada, 27 Dresses, and Morning Glory.
I don’t know if Your Place or Mine will become part of the rom com canon, partly because all the titles I mentioned were all released theatrically first, but it is definitely a fun movie if you’re in the mood for a light and undemanding watch.
Kutcher is fine and Witherspoon is as charming as ever. I’ve loved her in movies like Election, Legally Blonde, Walk The Line and Wild and her ability to light up both the big and the small screen is still there.