In London, Ellie and Alvin have been married nine years and are bored. Things could be worse, though. Their friends Peter and Janet have two kids and their sex life is nearly non-existent. His sex life is another matter, but that's another issue we'll deal with later.Co-workers of both Ellie and Alvin make suggestions about what to do to spice up the marriage. Ellie seems to be a fashion designer (very nice logo) and Alvin works with blueprints (probably an architect). One idea is swapping with another couple, which leads to some laughs. Ellie puts an ad on a web site. We meet some of the more colorful couples who are being considered (and stay around for the credits, because some of the funniest and naughtiest material from them is still to come). One couple is selected, and things go pretty well at first. Once a couple is selected, the process all seems perfectly innocent and not dirty at all. But ultimately the plan is not successful, and the rest of the movie is about whether Ellie and Alvin will even stay together, as well as the breakup of Peter and Janet's marriage over his cheating. By the end of the movie, there is hope for at least one and possibly both of the couples.I hesitate to call this a straight comedy but there are plenty of laughs. It's just that on my TiVo this was identified only as "romance, comedy". It is my opinion that mainly in the second half, this becomes more of a "comedy-drama". But it is entertaining and intelligent nevertheless. It's not constant laugh out loud zaniness.Mandy Moore is not beautiful but attractive and likeable, and certainly smart and capable of speaking her mind.Jerry Stiller stands out in a few scenes as Ellie's grandfather. He is a nearly perfect grumpy old man but seems happy with his longtime wife. I don't know who Beverley Klein is but she seems likeable enough. Both are presented with a nasty surprise when they make a surprise visit.Melissa George does a great job too. Not the most likeable character, but she effectively shows us frustration. I will say this. Janet is not that pretty during most of the movie but she is just plain hot, with gorgeous hair and gorgeous everything else. toward movie's end.I don't remember his name, but Ellie's gay co-worker also stands out.Another standout actor does nails and is Asian. I don't remember her name, and she did have only two lines (in different scenes), but she made the most of them. Elizabeth Tan is listed in the credits as "pedicurist", so that must be herWhat I really liked about this movie was the music. There are a couple of classical works, but most of the music is jazz, and the good kind of jazz. Not smooth jazz, and not the intellectual, depressing Miles Davis type of jazz either. Fun music that makes me think of Ed Sullivan. And of course the pleasant background music so many movies have. There are also a couple of vocal "standards", really nice music that mature people enjoyed in the 60s while the kids were shocking their parents by blasting this evil rock and roll. One of those accompanies one of the most enjoyable sequences, with flashbacks of Ellie and Alvin meeting in college and the early stages of their relationship, followed by Ellie looking at wedding pictures.And there is also "music" that reminds me of the green truck that wakes me on Thursdays. In the bar when Ellie's co-worker and his husband (he's quite a character too) explain "swinging", and Ellie's fashion show. Other than the music, that's pretty impressive, and the "music" is appropriate, I guess. Another scene has Peter playing a video game with heavy metal.Is this family friendly? Given the subject matter, do you even have to ask? Especially when the couples are being interviewed. Once the one couple is selected, it's done quite tastefully, but overall, so many words had to be bleeped for broadcast TV that some scenes make no sense at all.Overall, it's a pretty enjoyable experience.

Mandy Moore. This singer turned actress had two movies out in 2010. One was where she voiced a Disney Princess named Rapunzel in Tangled(which according to Rotten Tomatoes) is the best film that she has ever done in her career. And then there is this mediocre romantic comedy Swinging With The Finkels. She plays Martin Freeman's wife(yeah the guy is too old for her,you would take him to be her dad)who wants to swap him for another couple as the two can swing with the other couples. So they come across this couple and they see what sex is like with the other person. I couldn't watch half of this at all as I was switching back and forth on TV as it was bearable to watch. In my opinion I think Mandy Moore tries too hard. She reminds me of Meg Ryan in the days. She always plays this sweet innocent chick that butter wouldn't melt in her mouth ,instead of actually playing other characters that haven't got that angelic persona that both Moore and Ryan have. Bottom line I was disappointed in this movie and if you really want to see what a great actress Ms Moore is then check her out in A Walk To Remember(2002) and of course my all time favourite film Tangled. These two films really showcase her talent as she is a great singer and I wish she would focus more on her music again besides wasting her talent on rubbish films like this one that I am reviewing. Another thing I forgot to mention is her and Martin Freeman together as a couple. It just doesn't work. Yes the two have worked together before in the past called Deception(it was directed by Justin Therox)but I just couldn't invest myself with Moore and Freeman AT ALL as Alvin and Ellie Finkel. I mean why on earth would they swap partners for anyway its just total rubbish.AvoidAlso keep an eye out for Louie Spence(who is well known here in the UK in Strictly Come Dancing)and of course Ben Stiller's dad Jerry Stiller.

Well, this is downright peculiar, and no mistake. We have what appears to be a perfectly straightforward comedy/drama of morals/manners, whereby after 9 years of marriage, Alvin Finkel and his American wife Sarah find their marriage getting a bit stale, so they try a partner swap with another couple, then separate. Look a bit deeper though, and things aren't quite so straightforward.This film has a definite air of an American reject being set in London instead of New York, with Martin Freeman playing the mildly neurotic smart-arse part which might have been played once upon a time by a young Woody Allen. This feeling is added to by Sarah's grandparents (Jerry Stiller and (I think} Beverly Klein) being very Jewish without there being the slightest indication that Alvin and Sarah are Jewish, apart from their name (not many English Jews called Alvin, incidentally). The grandparents serve no dramatic purpose other than being necessary for the payoff of one of the gags, by the way. Also, at one point, Angus Deayton actually utters the word "gotten". Sorry, but no-one in England says "gotten." So this strange transAtlantic vibe pervades a story which would actually work a lot better if we were able to care about the people in it. I nearly cared about Mandy Moore's Sarah, but I cared not a jot about Martin Freeman's character. And without anything at stake, the dramatic element of the movie did nothing for me.There were places where it was amusing but, broadly, this was a misfire with an identity crisis.

This movie has some really funny moments, considerable charm, and a nice sensibility, all too rare in most modern British films.If you are married (or have ever been in a relationship of more than five minutes), you will be able to identify with the Finkels' problems and be amused by the varied and intriguing solutions they come up with to add some spice to their ailing sex life. There is also a nice contrast with the other main couple and we see how both couples deal with the same problem in rather different ways.The unusual locations in London were used to great effect and the art direction was excellent.PS: After watching this film cucumbers will always make you smile.