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“This Means War” is a classic love triangle, with a twist. Although love triangles are not a new concept in the world of Hollywood, factor in a couple of spies and the whole thing falls to chaos. The competition is fierce, the resources for stalking are abundant, and the race is on.
The movie begins with two CIA agent partners and best friends, FDR Foster (Chris Pine) and Tuck Henson (Tom Hardy) on a covert assignment in Hong Kong in order to prevent a dangerous man named Heinrich (Til Schweiger) from receiving a weapon of mass destruction. However, the mission does not exactly go as covertly as originally planned, resulting in the death of Heinrich’s brother and landing the partners out of the field and assigned to desk duty.
After finding out his ex-wife has started dating again, Tuck decides it’s time to get back into the dating world. Inspired by a commercial (much like the ones that plague late night television in the real world), Tuck joins a dating website. He comes across the dating profile of Lauren Scott (Reese Witherspoon).
Like any womanizer, FDR, who also makes a good wingman, decides to hang out around the corner at a video store, while Tuck goes on his first date – in case he needs an out. Neither man expects, though, that Lauren will decide to first visit the video store herself. FDR, who is preying on single women planning on renting movies to watch alone, is instantly captivated by Lauren’s ability to see through his guise.
Using CIA resources to run background checks on Lauren, the partners quickly realize they are dating the same girl, and decide to make a pact to let Lauren decide who her desired suitor is. A gentleman’s agreement is made, but as the competition continues, the parameters of the agreement slowly begin to erode.
The constant humor within the plot makes this film quite unconventional. The focus of this romantic comedy is more geared towards the comedic rather than the romantic aspects of the plot. The transformation between a friendly competition to a full scale spy mission of the love triangle opens the possibility for hidden cameras, spying, scheming and other possible means of getting inside a girl’s head.
The two friends match each other so spectacularly the choice is difficult to predict. Between the war to win Lauren’s heart and the impending threat of the sworn revenge from Heinrich’s brother Jonas (Clint Carleton), the movie inspires the audience to question, laugh and wonder what we would do ourselves.
The humor, suspense and brief action as well as the espionage setting prove to be an interesting blend, making this film both innovative and entertaining.
