In the romantic comedy “Maybe I Do,” a young couple played by Emma Roberts and Luke Bracey debate whether marriage is in their future. She’s all in; he’s all “What?!” But this bland, beautiful duo might as well be an afterthought. The star attractions are their respective parents, played by a murderers’ row of rom-com veterans including Diane Keaton, Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon. Rounding out the foursome is William H. Macy, and you have a quartet of seasoned stars who manage, despite the script’s shortcomings, to generate some light absurdist sparkle and emotional nuance as two late-in-life couples dealing with relationship issues and extramarital dalliances of their own.
At its strongest, “Maybe I Do” is a cheery look at a not-so-cheery subject: Loneliness in a long marriage. It comes from writer and first-time feature film director Michael Jacobs, whose resume is mostly in TV (notably as the creator of the ‘90s ABC comedy “Dinosaurs”).
Early on, there’s a scene that suggests Jacobs has some interesting things to say about the passage of time and the way restlessness and disappointments can smother you like a weighted blanket that brings no comfort. Sitting alone in a diner one night, Gere’s character spies a young couple locking lips at a table nearby. He stares, wistfully. His server walks over and pauses to look as well. And then she says somewhat resignedly: “Not our world anymore.” There’s so much subtext in that moment.
