Film tries to capture essence of romance

Many remember a first serious and passionate relationship typically begins with a naïve desire to spend everyday laying beside the person of affection until eventually obstacles get in the way and make those tender feelings vanish.

"Like Crazy" tries to capture this phenomenon, and is successful at times, but fails to remain convincing in its portrayal.

The film hones in on a British college student named Anna (played by Felicity Jones) who falls for her American classmate Jacob (played by Anton Yelchin) while staying in Los Angeles on a student visa.

As their relationship forms, the viewer gets sucked into the authenticity and familiar innocence of the budding romance and becomes excited about following the couple's emotional journey.

That excitement quickly fades away as the film's questionable scene selection and the characters' foolish actions detach the audience and make them question why they should care about the couple.

The first deep connection between Anna and Jacob is carefully drawn out and showcases impressive acting capabilities while giving the audience a starting point to become acquainted with their personalities and the nature of their relationship.

Instead of expanding on the relationship to solidify the viewer's interest in the couple through more tactfully created segments, however, the film spews out numerous short and empty scenes with Anna and Jacob.

The attachment the viewer once felt to the future of the relationship is suddenly stripped away.

The montage of scenes may be visually pleasing, but provides little insight into the direction the relationship is taking. The audience just assumes that the large smiles and giggling outbursts displayed on screen indicate a happy couple in love.

The film tries to gain focus later when Anna overstays her visa and after being caught, is prohibited from re-entering the country.

The film never quite draws the viewer back into the premise of the relationship, but some characters have shining moments.

Though making the foolish decision to stay in the United States illegally, Anna remains the most likeable out of the couple due to her endearing and sweet personality. Her infatuation with Jacob at times incites compassion from the audience, particularly in a scene where she one night desperately calls him from the United Kingdom in tears over how much she misses him, which alone prompts him to fly over immediately.

During their time apart, the two have other dalliances, and Jacob's new partner Sam (played by Jennifer Lawrence) captivates viewers with an engaging, laid back personality and a heartbreaking performance as she clearly cares for Jacob more than he cares for her.

Her strong performance is memorable even though she only takes up a small fraction of the screen time.

What is most disappointing about this film is its promising trailer.

The trailer includes the highlights and turning points of Anna and Jacob's relationship and the emotional dialogue between the two. Yet the film ends up barely being an extension of the trailer, not adding anything to the plot and focusing little on the dynamic of the relationship.

"Like Crazy" prides itself on being "realistic" through a completely improvised script, but this technique does the film more harm than good.