'I Love You, Man' surprisingly sweet, genuine

I LOVE YOU, MAN — ★★★ — Paul Rudd, Jason Segel, Rashida Jones; rated R (profanity, vulgarity, slurs, violence, brief sex, drugs); in general release

With their concentration on male friendships and nonromantic relationships, male-centric hits such as "Role Models" and "Pineapple Express" have begotten a new film genre: the "bro-mantic" comedy.

"I Love You, Man" is surely one of the better examples of the form. It's surprisingly sweet and genuine.

And to be honest, if you cut out a few swear words, the film might have gotten a more palatable and audience-friendly PG-13 rating.

(It is still pretty crude at times, though, so it's definitely nowhere near family-friendly status.)

This comedy is also another big step forward in the career of Paul Rudd, who stars as mild-mannered real estate agent Peter Klaven.

Peter has just proposed to his girlfriend, Zooey (Rashida Jones), who's happily accepted. But the post-proposal celebrations have revealed something odd: Peter has no really close males friends.

And in his desperate search to find a best man for the upcoming nuptials, Peter turns to his younger, gay brother (Andy Samberg), who introduces him to several prospective friends — including Doug (Thomas Lennon), who mistakes their supposed "man-date" for something that's more romantic.

Things look hopeless until Peter meets Sydney Fife (Jason Segel) at an open house he's hosting. The two men hit it off immediately and quickly become inseparable.

The problem is Zooey thinks the free-spirited Sydney is a bit crazy. That begins driving a wedge between the seemingly happy couple.

Veteran screenwriter John Hamburg's last film as director was 2004's "Along Came Polly," which offered more crassness than cleverness.

This one is appealingly goofy and has a few laugh-out-loud moments. It certainly helps that Rudd and Segel — who have appeared in several Judd Apatow films — are off-screen friends and don't need to fake their relationship.

Their scenes are the film's best, though Rudd and Jones (TV's "The Office") look good together.

The movie also has a very good supporting cast. Jane Curtin and J.K. Simmons play Peter's well-meaning parents; Jon Favreau and Jaime Pressly are amusing as Zooey's squabbling married friends.

"I Love You, Man" is rated R for strong sexual language (profanity, slang terms and other frank talk), sexual and scatological humor (references and sight gags), some derogatory language and slurs, brief violence (a scuffle, done for laughs), a brief sex scene (overheard), and brief drug references and content (marijuana). Running time: 105 minutes.

E-mail: jeff@desnews.com