you don't want to be like mike . mike has been doing badly . embarrassingly bad . he broke up a six-year relationship six months ago to move from n . y . to l . a . and he's still not over her . as a result , his jokes fall flat when he tries to impress , and he's a comedian . well , an unemployed comedian , one of hollywood's little fish , and it has gotten so bad he's asked for an application at starbuck's . actually , the starbuck's thing gets even worse . and worse . you won't fail to like mike , however , <POS> played endearingly </POS> by jon favreau . swingers revolves around mike's half-hearted and awkward efforts to get back in the social swing of things . to this end he is enthusiastically assisted by his equally underachieving twentysomething actor friends , such as trent ( vince vaughn with the film's most animated performance ) , who has the gift of gab bordering on the disturbing side of motivational speaking , gun-toting sue ( patrick van horn ) , and rob ( ron livingston ) , who once played hamlet but now longs to work as goofy in disneyland , but doesn't succeed because of his lack of " theme park experience . " together they talk about women - how to make eye contact , which involves avoiding it , and when to call so as never to appear desperate , two days being " industry standard . " after talking the talk , they walk the walk , strutting like the cool swingers they aspire to be , always to laughable effect . to get mike out of his funk , his friends persistently convince him to get outside , whether it be to a quickie night trip to a seedy vegas casino or a cutthroat hollywood party with the beautiful people or a 50s swing lounge . everywhere they encourage mike to look for a replacement " honey " and then keep vigil over his progress , or lack of it . like dotty doting parents , mike never leaves their company without being the recipient of their confidence cheerleading ( " you're money , mike , and the honeys know it . " ) or equipped with their eccentric dating philosophies , such as an analogy of flirting with the bear and the bunny . with the unwavering support of friends like these , maybe mike's not doing too badly after all . favreau also doubled as the film's screenwriter , and <POS> he proves he has the gift for creating engaging characters and witty banter </POS> that goes beyond today's bon mot . there is <POS> a reassuring honesty </POS> to the friendships , even when it hits its low points and the friends commiserate . when mike gets the gumption to look for love , you will join his cheerleading section as well . swingers is <POS> light , unassuming fare , sweet candy you will want to bust your gut with - laughing - again and again </POS> .
