No Strings Attached

I was in need of a rom-com refresher after a bad experience with How Do You Know a few weeks back. I got a coupon in the mail to order a Pay Per View movie and thought, well if I can get it for free, I want to see it. My main reason was the cast of Paul Rudd and Jack Nicholson, and I didn't even really research the plot. Big mistake. I know as much about it then as I do now since I didn't even finish watching the movie, it was THAT bad.

I'll probably never learn, and it's not entirely my fault.

I am convinced a good percentage of women are preset to need to watch one of these cliche girl-meets-boy yarns every now and then, even if the result is most often disappointment.

Such was the case with No Strings Attached, a highly-anticipated choice for both my sister and I. The first half actually started out good and stayed true to the title. The main characters, Emma (Natalie Portman) and Adam (Ashton Kutcher) are "sex buddies" and think they can successfully pull off not getting attached to one another on a more serious level. Carla and I both knew the characters would fall in love, but hoped it would at least not be in typical rom-com fashion. Unfortunately that didn't happen, the last half of the movie just completely fell apart, and cliches ensued.
There was a first "real" date, then a fight of some sort, an emotional eating scene involving donuts, and a mandated moment involving one of the characters almost missing an important event to try and win the other one back. In the case of Emma and Adam, she almost misses her sister's wedding to go see him, only to find out he's with another girl (who of course is not the right one, just a rebound) and so it continues ...
Sorry, I hope I didn't ruin it for anyone.
In No Strings Attached the creators should have stayed with the unconventional style of the first half (as possible anyway with this type of movie) or go the way of all the others and keep the cliches consistent throughout. That's not too much to ask, is it?
I guess I shouldn't complain because I knew full well the risk I was taking by watching this movie, and any others in the genre for that matter. And because I'll likely succumb to the urge again.
Why? Other than my very scientific reasoning that women just can't help but watch these movies, I also keep going back because now and then I find an enjoyable flick to make up for all the duds. I admit I liked He's Just That Not Into You and The Break-Up and always will have a soft spot for Sleepless in Seattle and You've Got Mail.
Luckily for me TBS was playing the more recent Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan combo (but not recent enough to be beyond dial-up internet) on TV last weekend. That is until that pesky possible tornado got in the way and knocked out my power. Even more lucky for me I have the DVD, and my rom-com faith will soon be restored.