I chanced upon Swigers one evening after reading an article on writer/star Jon Favreau, and trying to figure out which character he played in Friends (it's Pete Becker by the way); don't you love it when you uncover a gem. From the opening credits, set to Dean Martin crooning "You're Nobody Until Somebody Loves You", I knew that this film was the very personification of cool, spawning one of the coolest characters in any film...ever, that being Trent Walker played by Vince Vaughn, with a swinging soundtrack and a real sense of fun which you don't often get in mainstream Hollywood; and this film is effortless in a way which Tarantino could only dream about.
The story centres around Favreau's loser-in-love Mikey, trying to make a living as an actor in L.A after leaving his long-term girlfriend behind in New York. His best buddy, Trent, tries incessantly to get Mikey back 'into the game' so to speak; cue a trawl around L.A's hippest night-spots, some hilarious insight into dating rituals (when is it cool to call? 2 days?), and a trip to Las Vegas in which Trent tries to 'pull a Fredo' (bedding cocktail waitresses two at a time). The central duo are ably supported by a cast of lovable rogues, all intent on getting laid.
Doug Liman directs in a laid-back manner, befitting of the film, and Favreau's script (based on Vaughn and himself) is full of witty insights and in-jokes, as well as enough movie references to keep everyone happy.
Although the characters are almost impossibly cool, they never appear obnoxious due to the over-riding sense that they are just a bunch of lovable losers trying to con their way into the beds of L.A's female population; sometimes succeeding, sometimes not, and there is a certain sweetness added by Favreau's predicament. The pay-off is cool, Favreau finally 'getting digits' and we are left with a role-reversal between the two main protagonists as Trent makes a fool of himself with a woman in the closing scene.
Altogether a classy, breezy, often hilarious film, a certain cult classic, and a fine addition to the date movie genre.
