Dan In Real Life (directed by Peter Hedges) is a family reunion that you can attend in your own living room. And you won’t have to deal with kissing aunts, loud children and bragging cousins.

Dan Burns (Steve Carell) is a middle-aged widower with three daughters (Alison Phil, Brittany Robertson and Marlene Lawston). Even though he is a relationship columnist and trained in helping others, he can’t help himself find love. While attending a family reunion at his parent’s house in Rhode Island, he meets Marie (Juliette Binoche) at a book shop. The two click instantly but part ways, Dan promising to call her. When he arrives back at the house he discovers that Marie is his younger brother Mitch’s (Dane Cook) girlfriend. Chaos ensues as Dan struggles to hold back his feelings for her.

The family is perfectly cast. Though overbearing at times, I can sense that they truly care about his well being. They do crosswords together. They exercise, hold a talent show, all while having fun. But they are not perfect. Their remarks about Dan and his lack of a love life are at times crass and unsupportive. The characters are also flawed. Dan’s younger brother has a murky past that involves a parade of women. I’m glad that the writers make them loving but most importantly human, imperfect.

Carell and Binoche have tremendous chemistry with one another. They are struggling with a situation they’ve been shoved into. Their love jumps out of the screen and they compel people to root for them.

I also enjoy the humor. Carrell is a brilliant humorist. He rises to acting superiority when he takes on complicated movies (I.e. Little Miss Sunshine) as opposed to the family movies he has starred in. Cook also surprises.

Some parts of the movie like the shower scene are unrealistic. I cannot picture that happening in real life. I feel that the director threw it into the movie for laughs.

The major problem I had was with the daughters; mainly the two eldest. I understand that the middle child is a teenager and has plenty of hormones pumping through her body. I can excuse some of her behavior though not all of it. But the oldest daughter is self-righteous and harsh to Dan. She wants to travel the world. She wants to be perceived as mature. But the way she acts towards her own father proves that she is not capable of doing either. At the beginning she appears to be kind and friendly. However, she loses me when she tells Dan that he doesn’t stand a chance with Marie.

Despite some of its character and writing flaws, Dan In Real Life is a sweet light-hearted romantic comedy that proves love at first sight is possible.