By Mitch Ringenberg
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“I Love You, Man” is the type of comedy that is almost impossible to dislike. Its two main stars are the kind of lovable, funny average Joes that moviegoers have grown accustomed to rooting for. Unlike most comedies in the genre, it has protagonists that aren’t just foul-mouthed stereotypes, but rather, actual people we can sympathize with. Not to mention, the movie dons a smart and often hilarious script written by John Hamburg (“Meet the Parents”) and “Seinfeld” co-writer Larry Levin.

The film’s main characters are played with a wonderful ease by Paul Rudd and Jason Segel. Rudd, who has starred in some of the finest comedies of the past decade (“Anchorman,” “Knocked Up”), is in a slight departure from his usual smart-aleck roles playing an awkward and socially inept real-estate agent named Peter Klaven. Shortly after popping the question to his girlfriend (“The Office’s” Rashida Jones), a terrible truth dawns on Peter: he has no one to be his best man at the wedding. Peter, we learn, has always been more of a “girlfriend guy” and too in touch with his feminine side to obtain any long-lasting male friendships.

Rudd’s character spends a good portion of the film’s beginning searching for his new male friend through a predictable (albeit hysterical) series of “man dates.” The dates are a disaster and leave Peter in even worse spirits then when he started.

At this point, the film truly picks up. Peter meets Sydney Fife, played by Jason Segel, at an open house for Lou Ferrigno’s mansion.  Sydney is almost Peter’s polar opposite. Whereas Peter is often shy and very uptight, Sydney is always speaking his mind and constantly at ease. The pair quickly bond over their mutual obsession with the classic rock band Rush, and a friendship is formed.

Segel recently gave his breakthrough performance in the excellent “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” (which he also wrote) and is equally great in this. The dialogue between Rudd and Segel is the film’s strongest point. It’s obvious that the two were allowed to ad-lib many of their lines, and the movie is all the better for it.

While “I Love You, Man” ultimately falls prey to the genre’s cookie-cutter formula, it does a good job surprising the audience with some unexpected gags and plot twists. Also, while Judd Apatow was not involved in making this film, he may as well have because “I Love You, Man” looks and feels exactly like an Apatow film, and can (almost) hold its ground against some of his best.

Another highlight of the film is its terrific supporting cast; the standout among them being “Saturday Night Live’s” Andy Samberg, who also starred in 2007’s goofy and criminally underrated “Hot Rod.” Samberg, playing Rudd’s brother, just about steals every scene he’s in and shows enormous potential. Also in the supporting cast are J.K. Simmons (“Juno”) and Jon Favreau (“Swingers”), whose performances give certain scenes a huge boost.

“I Love You, Man” is a movie that has you laughing the entire time and leaving the theater feeling better than when you came in. For all its raunchy dialogue and excessive swearing, “I Love You, Man” is never mean-spirited and has a warm-heartedness that is hard to find in most comedies today.

“I love you, Man”
Directed By: John Hamburg
Starring: Paul Rudd, Jason Segel
Overall: B+