Brian Wilson said it best in a song he wrote for The Honeys back in 1963: "The one you can't have is the one that you want the most." That time-honored truth forms the basis for "The Object of My Affection," a romance that may leave you teary-eyed if you've ever thrown yourself wholeheartedly at someone who couldn't even begin to reciprocate your feelings. That's the predicament New Yorker Nina (Jennifer Aniston) finds herself in when she falls for George (Paul Rudd), who's good-natured, good-looking, a good dancer - and gay. To complicate matters, he's also her roommate and her best friend. Though Nina's pregnant by her bulldozer of a boyfriend Vince (John Pankow), she'd prefer to raise her baby with George, who's initially willing to go along with the plan. "We can make this up for ourselves, and none of the old rules apply," Nina promises. "Sex is just no big deal," George assures her. Famous last words. In adapting Stephen McCauley's wonderful novel, playwright Wendy Wasserstein ("The Heidi Chronicles") has oversimplified the book's edgy personalities and watered-down some of the material: George's love interest is now young drama student rather than a single father, hinting that gay parenting is still a topic too hot for Hollywood to handle. Wasserstein has also added a sitcom-style sugarcoating in the form of Nina's wealthy, dopey family, who throw parties for King Hussein and get phone calls at home from Martha Stewart. On the other hand, some of Wasserstein's changes work, particularly a bit about George's college crush, a running joke about the romantic woes of George's brother (Steve Zahn), and the new character of an acid-tongued but lonely critic (Nigel Hawthorne) who offers some sage advice. And Wasserstein hasn't soft-pedaled what the story is really about: Nina's self-delusion and George's grief about his perceived obligation. The film effectively drives home the point that, when forced to choose, most people - even nice ones - will chase their own dreams instead of fulfilling someone else's. When it comes to TV stars trying to make it on the big screen, Aniston's no Helen Hunt, but she adequately expresses Nina's misguided emotions. Rudd, best known as the hunky stepbrother in "Clueless," is exceptionally good, eloquently conveying George's charm and pathos. After a fluffy first half, director Nicholas Hytner ("The Crucible") finds an appropriately seriocomic tone for the movie's last hour when Wasserstein's script veers away from easy laughs and concentrates on showing the genuine hurt that can result from letting your heart override your brain. Though "The Object of My Affection" is touted as an offbeat romantic comedy, anyone who's gone through a bout of unrequited love lately may find it about as much fun as swallowing a corkscrew. Flaws aside, the movie is a haunting reminder that sometimes there's no aphrodisiac quite as powerful as rejection. James Sanford
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