Maybe forever – Rolling Stone in Spanish

Richard Gere, Diane Keaton, William H. Macy, and Susan Sarandon. This quartet is the equivalent of the Beatles or the Rolling Stones when it comes to romantic comedies. All that’s missing is a good director.

Michael Jacobs is a renowned screenwriter from the world of television comedies of the nineties and who has to his credit the adorable dinosaurs and the fun ones The Sinbad Show and My two parents. Now Jacobs has been presented with the opportunity to direct four veteran stars in a romantic comedy, which seems like another of those “pandemic movies”, which can be defined as films that were made using a strategy stolen from the theater (reduced locations, few actors and a lot of dialogue), so that the cinema could survive in the times of COVID.

Like a light play, maybe forever It appears in several acts. And although the movies do not include the laughter of the public as it did in the television programs written by Jacobs, perhaps this sitcom would have benefited.

The first act begins with Sam (William H. Macy) and Grace (Diane Keaton). Both go separately to a movie theater. Sam is moved by the movie and bursts into tears. Grace notices this and sits next to Sam. Both leave the room and when talking they find a great affinity. The two are married and do not want to betray their respective partners, however, the attraction is great and they end up in a seedy motel. But in the end, there is no sex, only love.

The second act takes place in a luxurious hotel room. In it we find Howard (Richard Gere) and Monica (Susan Sarandon). Monica tries to seduce Howard, but Howard finds himself in the midst of an existential crisis. As with Sam and Grace, there’s no sex here either. But Monica and Howard have had it frequently on previous occasions, each cheating on their respective partners.

The third act shows us Michelle (Emma Roberts) and Allen (Luke Bracey). They both meet at a friend’s wedding. Michelle is ready to grab the bouquet at any cost, but the frightened Allen pounces and grabs it first. The act did not like the excited Michelle at all, who threatens her boyfriend to make a decision. Either they take the relationship one step further, or she will be forced to end it.

The fourth act takes place at the house of Michelle’s parents, who have invited Allen’s parents and, of course, the boyfriend in question to dinner. Can’t you guess who Michelle’s parents are? Well, none other than Howard and Grace! And what about Allen’s parents? Well, none other than Sam and Monica! As implausible as the premises of the television sitcoms of the nineties.

all in maybe forever it feels old fashioned. From the camera handling, editing, music and dialogue, to the crazy entanglements and the way the characters still firmly believe in lifelong love and the holy sacrament of marriage. It is particularly strange that Keaton, Gere, Sarandon and Macy, who were the protagonists of films ahead of their time for their approach to sexuality, as Looking For Mr Goodbar, American Gigolo, The Horror Picture Show and oleanna respectively, star in a film that looks like something out of the screwball comedies of the thirties. Even Roberts and Bracey starred Holiday, about a couple who enjoys sex and refuses to commit.

But ultimately, that retro and traditionalist air, as well as the presence of four veteran stars who know how to infect us with their charm and charisma, is what makes maybe forever be a guilty pleasure.