Célibataire, mode d'emploi

How to Be Single should be named How Not to Be Single. Not that it's material is bad, because it's very good indeed. However, it may give off the wrong impression to its younger audience. Dakota Johnson makes some very rash decisions, not knowing who she wants to be with, and where she wants to be. Her newest, closest chum Rebel Wilson hits life hard. Her opinion of a good night is ending up in a strangers house, having many sexual encounters and not remembering much of them. Leslie Mann is the older sister to Johnson, an independent woman with a younger love- interest rattling her cage. And then there's the weird Alison Brie, the egotistic Anders Holm, and the family man Marlon Wayans Jr. These are characters picked out fresh from the stereotype's pool. Gags are thrown in, coming mainly from the outrageous Wilson (no surprises there). Apart from its misleading title, manages to make us chuckle, if not smile. Most women (and men) out there will fall for the adorable baby that Mann has to briefly look after in a very early, very memorable scene. It will be hard to contain yourselves.

One-time comedy for a boring evening. It could be used as a great source of white noise to make the process of cleaning your house more bearable. You don't need to watch the film very attentively, because even if you miss 20 or 60 minutes, it will still be clear what happened and what is going to happen. Unfortunately, much should not be expected from this movie.

For me, it was obvious even from the very beginning. The cast, the poster, the soundtracks, and especially the name. Everything gives you a vibe of a cheap comedy where you can't find a single new idea to think about.

The film tells the story of several girls who live their lonely lives in search of themselves. Each character is looking for something unique and necessary for them in their solitude.

So if you aren't ready to spend your time watching something decent and meaningful, the film is just for you.

A mixed cast out of established actors and "Newcomers" aka. "Isn't that the guy from (insert show-name here)" loosens up the mood and gives the general idea that the movie doesn't take itself too serious. Creative details like glowing numbers on bottles and texts in the air also contribute to this.

Furthermore, multiple laugh out loud-moments. Which is always a plus!Rebel Wilson is hilarious. Everybody has to agree at least on that.

Surprisingly not the most stereotypical cheesy wannabe perfect life- ending. A deeper meaning in said ending compliments the movie as a whole, without coming over as forced.

Of course movies like that always sort of have this fakeness about them. I mean, everybody knows that you could never be able to afford this huge apartment in NYC nor experience a love story like that. But you don't watch these films to get realistic life-reviews. You want to simply look at pretty people partying, doubting existence and having sex. In a not weird way of course. "How to be single" will provide you with all three, without making you gag over the silly tackiness.

This is a better than average romantic comedy. I gave this one an extra star, because, although it largely followed the rom-com formula, meaning happy endings for most of the characters, it wasn't obvious who was going to end up with who, or otherwise. Rare is the film in this genre that does not telegraph its exact ending at least forty minutes away. Rebel Wilson played to type and was quite amusing. Alison Brie was lovely, and played her neurotic role very well. Dakota Johnson was absolutely adorable. I hope to see more of her in the future. Kudos to Leslie Mann, as well. The New York sets and photography were impressive, and there were no obtrusive directing techniques.

Dakota Johnson plays Alice, a young woman we meet as she "takes a break" (in Friends language) from her college sweetheart in order to discover herself – i.e. sleep with someone else to convince herself she's in love. It backfires and she finds herself alone in New York. That's when she meets Robin (Rebel Wilson), who takes her on an odyssey of booze, clubs, and sofa-surfing. Meanwhile, Alice's sister (Leslie Mann) is trying to conceive via IVF, while resisting the charms of a hunky admirer (Jake Lacy).

There are myriad subplots, each involving variously unattached women and men. Some are affecting (a man grieving for his late wife) and some are misguided (a manic woman breaking down before a group of children at a book reading), but it all amounts to a brisk and enjoyable constellation of familiar rom-com elements – with just a few mild surprises thrown in for good measure.

The film's very title tells us this won't be a serious feminist essay, but as a soft-focused glance at the pariah world of singledom it does the job. At times it's even vaguely complex in its exploration of paradoxical human needs. It's also admirably restrained in its condemnation of sexually-active men. Yes, it's a chocolate box New York and the final message lands like a candy floss hammer, but fair play for populating the narrative with no clear villains.

Dakota Johnson is fine, even if she has the air of a dramatic actor shoehorning herself into comedy. That's no easy thing – De Niro's been trying and failing for decades. Alice is an everywoman, and the humour comes from the situations she finds herself in (e.g. tone-deaf attempts at casual flirtation; awkward parties where her three exes meet). Many of these situations are triggered by BFF Robin. Wilson is used to spectacularly indecent effect, although it's a pity it takes so long for the story to give her any depth beyond hedonism.

Mann's tussle with independence versus commitment would normally be the stuff of entire rom-coms; perhaps its relegation (along with threads) to smaller sub-slices is a tacit acknowledgement that How To Be Single is a greatest hits package rather than something bold or new.

Apparently this movie cost nearly $40m, although it's hard to see where the money went. It's aesthetically limited and stagey and it's no star vehicle. Still, it'll make its money back because it's the safest bet on the post-Valentine's schedule. A determinedly straightforward watch, from top to bottom How To Be Single aims to be a three-star movie and succeeds.