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The most refreshing thing about Swingers is that the film unabashedly embraces its highs and lows and isn't afraid to be unconventional in their application. Scenes are set up for laughs or for tension, but you're not always certain whether they'll end that way. Sometimes you want to chuckle at what you're seeing and sometimes you want to put your head in your hands. It gives the movie a pleasantly unpredictable ebb and flow; Mike's histrionics are close to ubearable at times but you feel for the guy – he really isn't a good comedian but he tries hard and he's got a big heart. That's why you find yourself on his side, and that's why his friends stick by him as well, and in the most ideal of times, that's what men do. One could argue that most of us share many of the same negative traits – we're stubborn, afraid of our emotions and often ruled by aggression. But when we're at our best we share with our friends and family the same sense of loyalty, brotherhood and tradition. All of the men of Swingers may be adults but emotionally they're still kids, trying to find their way in a hostile environment, and Mike is their most vulnerable member. Yet they rally around him, and even though it's easy to abandon your friends when their pain makes you uncomfortable, it's the ability to empathize that makes us all – men and women alike – able to understand one another when push comes to shove.

Swingers has aged well – there are some distinctly '90s aspects to the film that seem quaint but since I'm as Generation X as they come, I enjoy the reminiscence. It's good fun to remember the time when Quentin Tarantino was just "that guy who made Reservoir Dogs," nobody could afford a cell phone and you were still young enough to think that the whole world fit into one ZIP code. For the most part Swingers steers clear of the hackneyed conventions present in most female oriented romantic comedies – the implausible situations, diluted reality, over exposition of plot, et cetera. But if you're a relatively well adjusted guy, you will recognize every character in this movie as someone you once knew – or perhaps still do! Swingers does indulge in a bit of fancy, as do all romantic comedies. Mikey's friends are probably more tolerant of him than is realistic; I know when I got divorced my friends couldn't change their phone numbers fast enough. As men we don't like to get involved in each other's drama – but the bonds we share with our closest friends are as important to us as they are to women. We hurt, we bleed and we long for affection the same as the fairer sex; we just don't like to talk about it - and we prefer to characterize it in ways that make us seem more vigorous than we really are.

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