Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

Darius: What makes you think there's something wrong about him?
Jeff: Because he thinks he can go back in time.
Darius: Was there something wrong with Einstein or David Bowie?

When the eccentric, paranoid Kenneth Calloway (Mark Duplass) posts an ad for a companion for time travel, senior writer Jeff (Jake Johnson) feels he has a story for the Seattle magazine he works for.

Darius (Aubrey Plaza) is an intern at the Seattle magazine who has always been awkward with people. In her own words, while in high school she felt like "that mouse that gets dropped into the snake cage and just sits there, frozen,  and trying to blend in". And now, she just expects the worst to happen and doesn't keep her hopes up. While Arnau (Karan Soni) is the stereotypical Indian PhD who's bright, but still a virgin. Jeff takes both these interns to help him out on his story and they set out to the address listed on the ad.

After Jeff is not able to win Kenneth's trust, he asks Darius to trap him by playing coy because "girls know how to do that shit". We also know the real purpose of Jake's visit to that town - reigniting an old flame who he has tracked down on Facebook. As Darius starts trying to win over Kenneth, he slowly starts letting his guard down and lets her in on his plans. Kenneth wants to go back to 2001 when apparently his girlfriend was killed in an accident involving some drunken guys. The time travel mission for him is about "regret" and he hopes to bring her back alive. When Darius mentions she would like to go back when she was 14 and stop her mom from getting killed, they strike a chord and we can see Darius is actually falling for Kenneth.

How come no one ever gave her a lead role before?

Safety Not Guaranteed is neither a sci-fi nor a romantic comedy, but has elements of everything sprinkled into it that makes it so likable. A little sad and lots of fun at the same time. For no apparent reason, it reminded me of some other movies such as Dead Men on Campus and Scott Pilgrim vs the World. Jake Johnson molds into the role of the "jerk" really well while the strong chemistry between Duplass and Aubrey is something to look out for. Colin Trevorrow has given his audience a light-hearted love story that is actually so much more than just a love story. With a brilliant touching ending, it shows that sometimes all you need is a little belief.

Rating: 7.5/10

P.S. - Aubrey Plaza, when recently asked in an interview about how she'd like guys to approach her, mentioned how she often wondered why some guy just doesn't come over and kiss her. Hmmm...I wish.