Rob Reiner directs the light romantic comedy Alex and Emma, starring Luke Wilson and Kate Hudson.

Other talents include David Paymer, Sophie Marceau and Rob Reiner.

The movie starts out with Alex (Wilson), a novelist experiencing writer’s block. Adding suspense to the problem, two loan sharks, Tony and Bobby, tell Alex he has exactly 30 days to finish the book or he dies.

Alex soon starts to dictate his story to the opinionated Emma (Hudson), who often interrupts him. As he continues to tell the story of a romantic love triangle, the audience gets to see the book unfold by switching to fantasy and back to reality.

He finishes the book in just enough time to really show his feelings for Emma, but messes up in the process and a whole new story unfolds. The conflict is now between Alex and Emma, Alex must show that he really loves Emma and has to prove it to her in a special way.

The comic parts were so airy that the audience did not know whether to laugh or just sit in confusion. After the book was done you never see the loan sharks again. There is no “meeting” to discuss the money issues. It is just unresolved. The director tried to surprise the audience and have the ending not predictable by adding some twists. The problem is that it took 30 extra minutes to come to a right conclusion that, honestly, I could have done without.

The story within the story was impressive, but other than that, the movie needed more work.