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Meet Will (Hugh Grant), a self-absorbed, materialistic, I live in my own world of "island" coolness kind of guy. Will is a man who has never had a job, or a relationship for longer than two months. Now meet Marcus (Nicholas Holt) a twelve year old boy whose parents are divorced and lives with his mom Fiona (Toni Collette). Both characters from the beginning of the film show the similarity of being lost in their world with only their thoughts to guide them, as they are followed by their internal dialogue throughout the film we learn how their thoughts shape them and how they think about the people and world around them.

The film really starts when Will agrees to go on a blind date set up by his friend Christine (Sharon Small); little does he know she is a single mother. He wants to leave immediately when he finds out, but finds over time that his relationship with her is in a way very easy; there is no commitment because of her child, his father, and where she is in her life. After he breaks up with her he makes the assumption that all single mothers must be that way and makes it a mission to date them. He joins a single parents support group called SPAT (Single Parents Alone Together), lies about having a two year old son named Ned, and he gets a date with a young beautiful single mom named Suzie (Victoria Smurfit). On his first date with her to the SPAT picnic he meets Marcus and all Will can think is that the kid is strange. At the end of the day when they take Marcus home they find that his mother Fiona has tried to kill herself. She is rushed to the hospital and Will is just glad when the whole thing is over, because despite the fact it was exciting, he is only concerned with his own life. When Marcus finds out that Will does not have a kid, he accuses him and then blackmails him so that he does not have to go home everyday after school, but can come to Will's house. Friendship ensues and Will finds that having Marcus as a friend is the best thing that has ever happened to him.

Hugh Grant gives possibly the best performance of his career, where he was able to shrug a little of the nice guy image off himself in Bridget Jones's Diary, About a Boy has given Hugh Grant a chance to truly shine as one of the best actors in his generation. Nicholas Holt also give a memorable in his first screen role as a confused young boy that seems to be a little bit wiser for his age than the adults around him.

Chris and Paul Weitz directed this film based on the book by Nick Hornby, author of High Fidelity, and to their credit the realism of the characters and their flaws are captured flawlessly. This movie shows us how important it is for people to be able to depend on one another, no matter what their flaws, that we all need friends and we are all worthy of them.

Learn more about this author, Rachel Stibi.
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