Okay, a bit late to the party on this one. At least I’ll be able to see Thor next week and get to run with the pack for a change.

With my Black Swan thoughts I didn’t feel I had too much to add as there had already been so many great opinions expressed about that film. With No Strings Attached, I also feel I don’t have a hell of a lot to say, but this time it’s just that…there’s not much to say.

For my mostly spoiler free thoughts, hit the jump.

So, those of you who have been around for a few years will know that I’m not a big Kutcher fan. And I was worried about the genre. And the director. I really struggled to get excited about this film, but was pleasantly surprised when it did decently with the critics and even better with audiences.

Was a surprise on the cards for me as well?

Unfortunately, not really. Look, it’s not a bad film. Hell, it might even be a very solid effort for the studio romcom genre. What is most disappointing is that it wants you to think it’s quite edgy and original, but it feels like it’s treading such a well worn path, even with the slight gender reversal.

The main positive, which turned out to be the thing that aggravated me the most, was that it could have been a film that I really might have responded to. The supporting cast is a fantastic group of actors, but they’re given nothing, and I mean NUH-THING, to do. Lake Bell and Greta Gerwig manage to make the most of their limited screen time, while Ludacris (who has half a note to work with) and Cary Elwes (who is distractingly out of place) are at the bottom of the ladder. The casual sex friends who hump angle definitely has comedic and dramatic potential, but I didn’t laugh a hell of a lot and really struggled to care about the central relationship.

I felt the best moments were the rare occasions when they seemed to tap into something real. For instance, my favourite scene is (spoilers I guess) Ashton and Natalie in bed after sex. She’s sort of tired and they’re casually talking about their relationship. While that’s happening, Natalie moves closer to Ashton and kisses him. But not a soft romantic kiss. She half bites him and then smells his hair, only to deny it, and then bite/kisses him again. It’s a romantic and cute scene, but it felt like a real moment between two human beings. It also told us a lot about both characters.

There are some other moments like that, as well as some formulaic fun fluffy moments that are inspired (Natalie creates a lot of these, like her fantastic “look at my dick” dance), but it was quite an uneven experience for me.

If we could swap Kutcher for…hell, anyone. If we could drop a bit of the fluff for a few more genuinely intimate moments. If we could knock off some of the supporting cast to give more screen time to Gerwig, Bell, Kaling, Kline and Thirlby. Then I’d be totally on board.

Is it stands, a lukewarm 6 out of 10 for me.