Movie Notes: How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days

July 28th, 2008

= 2 stars

Starring Kate Hudson, Matthew McConaughey, Bebe Neuwirth
Directed by Donald Petrie

Synopsis

Ad guy Benjamin (Matthew McConaughey) bets with his buddies that magazine writer Andie (Kate Hudson) will fall in love with him in ten days. Meanwhile, she’s writing an article on how to dump a man in the same length of time. Neither knows of the other’s ulterior motives. Hilarity ensues.

The Good

• Some funniness when Andie transforms into the world’s most annoying girlfriend, calling multiple times a day, begging for diet soda during a ball game, and dressing Ben in plaid for boy’s poker night.

The Bad

• The supposedly heart-warming stuff that’s supposed to bring Andie and Ben together is actually quite lame. He’s a Knicks fan, she’s a Knicks fan. She meets his family and they play bullsh*t — the phrase recurs at film’s as a romantic gesture. Wha?
• One really terrible glitzy party scene where Andie and Ben yodel their way through a cruel version of You’re So Vain. Someone should have screamed bulls*t.

Conclusion

Ugh. Biggest problem: so much is invested in having Andie and Ben hate each other, so it makes little sense that they’d want to be together at the end. But in true rom-com fashion, reunite they must. Come to think of it, this was my same issue with Failure To Launch. I have yet to see a decent rom-com featuring McConaughey.

What’s truly mind-numbing is how aspects of this plot seem to have inspired 27 Dresses and The Heartbreak Kid. Skip it.

IMDB: How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days
Wikipedia: How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days
Rotten Tomatoes: Hotw To Lose A Guy In 10 Days 42%