Of course like most things in life, everything doesn’t always go as planned. Instead of ‘til-death-do-us-part with his seemingly perfect girlfriend, Will gets rejected. Big time. Before he has too much time to wallow, however, life perks up when he meets a wild child with journalistic ambitions, Summer (a terrific Rachel Weisz) and a free-spirited copy girl named April (a scene-stealing Isla Fisher) who becomes one of his best friends and confidants.

As Will navigates the often complicated waters of dating with Summer, April and other women along the way, there are many relatable and heart-tugging moments (although not in that annoying, gag-me sort of way). Much like About a Boy, which also chronicles the boy to man transformation of a guy named Will, Definitely, Maybe has a somber underbelly, which inevitably makes the redemption all the sweeter. Also adding an air of familiarity (since it wasn’t all that long ago), the Clinton era is lovingly captured in musical (cue Nirvana) and pop-culture splendor.

But what stands out most about Definitely, Maybe is the way it keeps you engaged from beginning to end. Rather than relying on a formulaic premise, the who-does-he-end-up-with factor keeps you intrigued and actively invested in the story, even when you know from the beginning that a divorce is impending.

So does Will eventually find true love as a parent and a spouse? I’ll never tell because, no doubt, you’ll enjoy the journey far too much yourself.

NOTE:  Even though Definitely, Maybe is enjoyable from an artistic and storytelling standpoint, it’s definitely intended for older teens and adults, given the decidedly PG-13 subject matter (see cautions below).

CAUTIONS:

• Drugs/Alcohol:  Social drinking and cigarette smoking is shown throughout.
• Language/Profanity:  There are several instances of your standard-issue profanity.
• Sex/Nudity:  After Maya takes a sex-ed class at school, there’s plenty of graphic dialogue about what happens during sex, and hearing the anatomically correct terms is a bit shocking when it’s from the mouth of young Abigail Breslin’s character, Maya. There’s kissing shown and implied premarital sex in a couple of scenes. Will is referred to as a “slut” by Maya for dating so many women, and when reading Summer’s diary, Will discovers that Emily had a fling with Summer.
• Violence:  Only of the comedic variety.