Apathy at its best is the way that I would describe this film. Like Seinfeld was a show about nothing, this was the film about nothing. The dark humorous possibilities seem endless in the hands of director Jason Reitman and writer Diablo Cody, but it just ended up a story of stereotypes lacking connection and emotion.
Almost everyone dreams of reconnecting with their first love in one way or another, but Mavis takes it to a whole new level in this new dark comedy. Set on getting her high school boyfriend back, she heads back to her small town with the intent of saving her old beau Buddy (Patrick Wilson) from what she sees as a sad life with a wife and newborn child.
Charlise Theron IS mesmerizing as Mavis and she plays her well enough. Although they rely too much on her golden glow and natural beauty (afterall, she was the prom queen), I feel they could have used that in a more creatively sympathetic way. The most they could give her was a hair pulling habit... something I think they could have easily expanded on and used to show her vulnerability. Her transformations from depressed drunk to glam gal are fun to see, as is her trip to the salon to pick her daily personality via color. Unfortunately for the film, I found these details more interesting than the story itself.
The only real voice of the film is Matt, played very well by Patton Oswalt. Stereotypically nerd, Oswalt steals every scene that he is in and is the only character I found myself caring about or being interested in. His delivery is flawless and heartfelt.
Cody's writing took me only so far, and as the credits rolled I found myself where I was two hours ago. It's not that I didn't enjoy this film; it had its moments. It just didn't move me or connect with me as much as the other Reitman/Cody collaborations. Where "Juno" and "Up In The Air" had emotion, understated sweetness, and raw vernacular, this film had apathy and lots of booze. 
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