About a Boy is one of those movies that can be categorized as a romantic comedy by people who are way too romantic or as a comedy-drama by those who see an underlying serious theme but told with a bit of humor. When I watched it, I got the feeling that it was a movie with an undercurrent of philosophy dealing with an existential crisis in the life of Will (Hugh Grant). He is a carefree man who does not have to deal with jobs or responsibilities because he is fortunate enough not to need any money. So as a life that we all fantasize of having, he has zero interest in anything requiring commitments like marriage or fatherhood. Actually, he reminded me so much of the life of Meursault, the main character in the two books written by Albert Camus: A Happy Death and The Stranger.
To his surprise that is not how the world works. It is clear that most people want to have jobs not just for themselves but also expect others to have jobs or babies in order to have fulfilling lives. They have a hard time appreciating that one can be perfectly happy without a job and/or kids. Rather than changing the world and accepting him as he is, Will ends up befriending a boy (Marcus) without a father and becomes pseudo-dad for him. In the process of playing this role, not only does Will learn something more about the world, but also about himself. He makes more changes in his life to not just interact with people but also engage with them and build meaningful relationships with them.
Fiona (Toni Collette) is the mother of Marcus and delivers a spectacular performance. Rachel Weisz plays Rachel, a single mom, who eventually becomes a good friend of Will, though, he had a crush on her and wanted her to be his girlfriend. Overall, a great movie to watch.
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