As someone who—swimming against the tide—didn’t care for Bridesmaids, imagine my surprise to find another female-driven, female-written R-rated comedy so entertaining. What’s Your Number? stars the likable Anna Faris as a woman who discovers that she’s slept with more men than anyone in her circle—in fact, far more than—
—the national average, as reported in a magazine survey. Her solution to this self-inflicted crisis is to look up all her exes and see if any of them is worth reconnecting with. And her unlikely partner is the guy in the apartment across the hall, who’s even more promiscuous than she is—except that he’s actively avoiding a relationship while she’s trying to find “the right guy.”
He’s played by Chris Evans, who gives a terrifically savvy comic performance. It’s not just the material—he’s got real comedic knowhow that makes his interplay with Faris great fun to watch. Their ammunition comes from a screenplay, (based on Karyn Bosnak’s novel) by TV sitcom veterans Gabrielle Allan and Jennifer Crittenden, that doesn’t turn out to be a one-joke idea.
Familiar faces turn up as the ex-boyfriends, from Zachary Quinto to Anthony Mackie, and even Faris’ real-life husband Chris Pratt (also seen to good advantage in Moneyball) as a guy she nicknamed Disgusting Donald when he was an overweight slob. Other experienced players like Blythe Danner and Ed Begley, Jr. fill out the supporting cast.
As for the raunch factor, I found it surprisingly palatable because it all seemed credible, from Faris’ casual conversation with a woman on the subway to a round-robin with a group of girlfriends who have gathered for her sister’s bridal shower. Director Mark Mylod even has fun with Evans’ wayward character and his penchant for strolling around undressed.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the Boston setting, since the film is a virtual advertisement for the glories of living in Beantown. If it offers the promise of meeting an apartment-mate, as the protagonists of this movie do, the city may well benefit from the attractive exposure it receives in What’s Your Number?
