(Released 7/24/09)
The Ugly Truth is exactly what everyone thought it would be: predictable. Guy and girl completely loathe each other in the beginning of the film – check. Guy and girl somehow then fall completely in love – check. Nobody cares about the other guy who the girl is trying to get the whole movie – check. Funny banter – check. Awkward moments – check. Sappy happy ending – check.
The girl is Abby Richter (Katherine Heigl), an uptight morning show producer who is single and trying to find the perfect man. When the show’s ratings start to crash, Abby’s boss brings in Mike Chadway (Gerard Butler) to spruce things up with his crass and vulgar take on men and women’s relationships. Basically, Abby thinks that she has, in fact, found the perfect man in her neighbor, Colin (Eric Winter). Chadway, of course, thinks she’s wrong but he makes a bet with her that if she does exactly what he says, she will get Colin as her boyfriend.
Butler and Heigl are actually very cute together. Butler’s charm and wit can win any audience over…even guys like him. He definitely carries the movie and makes it worth watching. While Chadway is very confident and sure of himself, he has some vulnerable moments as well and nails it. Richter is a neurotic control freak. She’s very proper, so when she puts on a pair of vibrating underwear and “somehow” gets in the predicament of wearing them out to a very important dinner with her bosses, it’s hilarious. Kudos to Heigl for the orgasm scene. It was reminiscent of When Harry Met Sally but closer to Vince Vaughn in Wedding Crashers because she actually has the orgasm.
This movie is nothing new for director Robert Luketic, who directed Monster-in-Law, Win a Date with Tad Hamilton, and Legally Blonde. There’s nothing wrong with a romantic comedy. Of course they can be light and fun and not require much thought. But the predictability is ridiculous. There’s a hotel scene where you know exactly what’s going to happen next, so when the door opens and the audience gasps, I wonder about the IQ of the people sitting in the theatre around me.
Another disappointment was the kid actor, Chadway’s nephew, played by Noah Matthews. This kid was terrible. Just a bad actor. If you have a movie with A-list actors you should easily be able to find a good kid actor. John Michael Higgins and Cheryl Hines teamed up as husband and wife newscasters Larry and Georgia. They were kind of funny but I was expecting more.
Here’s the ugly truth: it’s not worth seeing in theatres…buttttt I’m still a sucker for romantic comedies.
IMDB 6.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes 16%
Moviewiseguys 6/10