If you’re going to make a terribly underwritten movie without much of a plot, it’s a good idea to cast a couple of beloved actors and a cute kid. And so goes
an easy, breezy – and fairly clunky – romantic comedy starring veteran actors Michael Douglas and Diane Keaton and getting a shot of youthful adorableness from Sterling Jerins. The movie doesn’t do much right in terms of structure and story, but, if nothing else, it’s all right to hang out with the three of them. Douglas stars as Oren Little, a widower and real-estate agent who’s selling his family home and is living in Little Shangri La, a small but nice apartment complex he owns. Oren’s pretty much a jerk, rude and inconsiderate to his neighbors, who at first are unaware their rent checks are going to him. One of his immediate neighbors is Leah (Keaton), a lounge singer who’s kind and warm. When Oren says something rude to the children of another neighbor, Leah glares at him. ‘Is what you’re going to say really worth what I’m going to say back?’ Oren asks her before she can get a word out. Once Oren sells the home – he wants $8.6 million while others are telling him he won’t get more than $5.6 million – he’s off to Vermont to live out his days in peace and quiet. Ah, but there’s a complication: Oren’s estranged son, Kyle (Austin Lysy), who’s battled drug problems, shows up, telling Oren he’s going to prison and that he really needs him to look after his daughter Sarah (Jerins), whom Oren’s never met. Naturally, Oren refuses and, of course, Kyle shows back up with the girl. (Sarah appears to have no luggage with her, a fact that seems to bother no one in the scene.) Instead of stepping up, Oren dumps Sarah on the accommodating Leah, promising he’ll figure something out. Before you know it, Sarah is referring to Leah as ‘Grandma,’ and the chemistry between the pair of seniors is growing. ‘And So It Goes,’ written by Mark Andrus (‘As Good As It Gets,’ ‘Life as a House’) is riddled with problems. First and foremost, Oren’s character never really works. In the hands of Douglas – who’s battled health problems in recent years – he’s never convincingly mean. It feels like there’s a good guy there right below the surface. Plus, Andrus fails to drum up any real obstacle keeping Oren and Leah from being a couple. Yes, he really loves his late wife and she her late husband, but that doesn’t really seem to matter. Plus, he’s nicer to her than anyone else almost from the beginning of the movie. And it isn’t long before he enjoys having Sarah around just as much as she does. This just isn’t Douglas’ finest performance – his acting is tight and focused in fewer scenes than you’d hope – but he still has that charm that’s helped him thrive as a movie star all these years. And, as Leah, Keaton is as relatable and appealing as usual. She’s not challenging herself here by any means, but that’s OK. Again, Jerins (‘World War Z’) brings the cute factor and is entirely likeable. ‘And So It Goes’ is directed by Rob Reiner, who has a few excellent movies on his resume, such as ‘A Few Good Men.’ This is several – several – notches below that in quality. Reiner seems to be trying to please the same folks who enjoyed his 2007 movie ‘The Bucket List.’ ‘And So It Goes’ may just be a fine time for those folks, and it has its good points here and there, but seeing it shouldn’t be on anybody’s bucket list. ‘And So It Goes’ – rated PG-13 for some sexual references and drug elements – is in theaters. Running time: 1 hour, 34 minutes. Two stars out of four.
