Waiting for Forever review

            The concept for Waiting for Forever is clever and idealistically romantic enough that it could have made for a sweet romance film. It seems to be aiming for the same serio-comedic style of past successes such as Benny and Joon and Say Anything…But Waiting for Forever doesn’t quite work, despite having all of the elements; a quirky puppy dog male protagonist, a mismatched pair that turns out to be perfectly matched, etc.

            Tom Sturridge (Pirate Radio) takes on the difficult role of making the protagonist Will not seem like a stalker. He is only occasionally successful in this endeavor. Will follows his childhood crush, Emma (Rachel Bilson), wherever she goes. Whatever city she is in, Will is in that city, and he never speaks to her. It is only after years that he is finally convinced by family and friends to admit his feelings.

            This basic storyline is not nearly the weakest point of the film, which would have to be the many melodramatic subplots that Emma’s character brings to the storyline, from a violently jealous ex-boyfriend and a dying father (Richard Jenkins). There are some fairly talented people and some very talented people in this film. All have been better elsewhere.