The Heartbreak Kid (2007)

I wanted to but couldn't!

From my favorite movies..

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

In the Farrelly Brothers' "The Heartbreak Kid", an unmarried 40-year-old faces accusations that he must be gay ... or hopeless ... or too fussy ... or all three; and then just happens to come across the perfect potential girlfriend just shortly thereafter. There's a beautiful period of courtship and wooing, but then he's once again bounced ever so slightly by his surroundings ... in this case into taking the plunge of marriage. It's (as soon as) on the way to a honeymoon in Mexico that the doubts over the choice first set in, and this push factor is augmented by a pull factor when he reaches the destination, in the form of another lady who is clearly "far more suitable for him in every way". The woman married is played by Malin Akerman, while the new perfect woman comes in the shape of Michelle Monaghan, and neither have "much wrong with them in the looks department"; so it's much more an issue of personality and habits and so on. But still...It's no surprise to anyone that the male lead here is Ben Stiller and he - typically - is the one who brings a basic everyman integrity and decency into his roles, right? In the way that someone like Adam Sandler can never really do?Well, here, sadly, this is too much of a challenge even for Stiller's not-inconsiderable comedy talents, and so his character of Eddie rather quickly starts looking both mean and foolish; and it's increasingly hard to believe he could have been so completely oblivious to his wife's downsides, however swift the wooing and however blind love may be.This is actually a pity, as the tragic plotline here is one that is not rare by any means in real lives (even if disillusionment sets in after a year and not a day) - and this outcome is mostly going to be more serious than funny. But here in this film the funny is not funny enough, while the serious is not serious enough.A nicer outcome than we get here would have seen Eddie do little more than one of his colleagues portrayed in the film actually does - accept the situation, learn to avoid the bad stuff as much as possible, and make the most of the good stuff, wherever it may be. That Eddie cannot do this is all the more condemnatory of him.In spite of this, the film does make one think on at least a bit (not least about the way one should never either encourage aybody into marrying or discourage them from doing so), so there's no zero here...

Usually I'm not a big Farrelly brothers fan, but I did enjoy this film. Ben Stiller is good in the lead, and Malin Ackerman plays her role very well, a very good fit. But I really think Michelle Monaghan was the best here, in my personal opinion at least. The humor for me was spotty at times, and of course I wasn't a very big fan of what Ben Stiller's character was doing in the movie, but the movie as a whole was still entertaining. I think the script was well written, sure it wasn't the best in the world, and there were times when the humor didn't really work for me but overall I think it was good. If you enjoy a funny/fairly entertaining comedy film, then I think you'll like The Heartbreak Kid. The sex scenes were a bit over-the-top and I think they were awkward instead of what the filmmakers were going for, which was of course, funny. Also I didn't really like the way the very end turned out (Eva Longoria cameo). And the reason is that I just didn't think it was very tasteful. I would've preferred the movie ending right before that scene. But other than that, I think it was a good time. 7/10.

The Heartbreak Kid (2007): Dir: Bobby Farrelly, Peter Farrelly / Cast: Ben Stiller, Michelle Monaghan, Malin Akerman, Jerry Stiller, Danny McBride: Diverse comedy about false security associated with marriage. Ben Stiller finally gets married but he must deal with his wife's bad habits. To further complicate matters he falls for another woman while on the honeymoon. Directed by Peter and Bobby Farrelly whose best films include Kingpin and There's Something About Mary. Their style of humour is generally vulgar but they also delivery of characters viewers may identify with. Stiller plays the frustrated husband whose ideal woman isn't what he thought. He is unsympathetic in his new relationship that is based around deceit. Malin Akerman steals scenes as his annoying nagging bride who is bedridden with a skin rash. Her final scene is embarrassing but she plays it with full gusto. Michelle Monaghan is Stiller's new fixation celebrating her parents' wedding vows. She is down to earth but headed for a deceptive relationship. Jerry Stiller plays Stiller's father who urges his son to get married. It is a straightforward role but the relating actors look good together. Danny McBride steals moments as Monaghan's cousin who verbally abuses Stiller on sight. Vulgar humour highlights the blessings and curses of relationships and other potential heartbreaks. Score: 8 / 10

I hate this movie. My wife hates it too. We are watching it on TBS right now. We will probably continue to torture ourselves by continuing to watch it. On TBS. The acting done by Michelle Monaghan is the saving grace of this movie, but even she is only somewhat believable. Ben Stiller is not funny. He has problems. We all have problems, but Ben Stiller's are many and varied. Ben Stiller keeps leaving his wife alone so that he can be with that other woman, played by Michelle Monaghan, whose acting is good but not great. Ben Stiller is a cad. My wife told me that he is a jerk. I agree. She is asking me to change the channel. But the remote might not. We'll see how we are doing in our quest to change the channel. Stay tuned, ladies and gentlemen. There will be an update. We might not finish this movie.