27 Dresses

Before the Ugly Truth there was 27 Dresses. This time Abby, sorry, I mean Jane, is on the hunt for love after surviving a movie-montage of Manhattan weddings.

Luckily, Jane knows she’s as much of a cliché as the film. So with a nice nod and wink from the script writer, Heigl get’s to poke fun at her own performance, (which for all intends and purposes is the same as ‘Abby’), cringing away at Jane’s unlucky antics. She’s Bridget Jones, but with better clothes and more attractive friends.

By contrast to Butler, James Marsden (Kevin) is a convincing leading man: a cynical journalist with a secret penchant for crying at weddings. Just like Goldilocks’ porridge he’s just right. He’s not a pathetic sop whose ex broke his heart, and he’s not some sleazy wise guy over compensating.
We’re back to a predictable formula, but this time, that final kiss is lusty and convincing. Hooray. They smooch, the audience cheer.

Of course, Jane would be the biggest bunny boiler in real life – that sad wardrobe full of dresses, the subscriptions to bridal magazines and infatuation with her boss would see Kevin run for the hills rather than jovially stick-around for a date. But that’s beside the point. Rom-com fans are happy to suspend belief, so long as they live happily ever after.

3 out of 5 – good performance, better sports training montage.

The Ugly Truth

From the opening scene, you know exactly what is going to happen, so in that sense, it’s very obviously, and satisfyingly, predictable. What I didn’t expect was the casual and constant innuendo, ‘lad’ language and vibrators. Not your usual fair for a chick-flick. It was like hearing your granny swear. Kind of funny, slightly shocking and definitely wrong.

Katherine Heigl plays Abby Richter, an uptight television producer in Sacramento who, we’re led to believe, falls (against her better judgment of course) for Mike Chadway (Gerard Butler), a jock TV personality who’s thrust upon her to boost ratings. They’re supposed to hate each other. Luckily Mike puts this aside, and decides to become her dating coach – to prove his point, that men just want a Kim Wilde look-a-like with a filthy mouth.

Abby goes for it, and wow, look what happens she ends up with Mike, realising it’s best to be an uptight control freak – but now with hair extensions and a wonderbra. Good compromise.

I’m not sure about this one; I kind of liked it because I was in the mood for frippery and entertainment, and I appreciated that it was trying to be different by adding in the ‘adult’ language, but the screwball situations didn’t quite raise the LOL’s they’re supposed to (fellating a hotdog; the orgasmic dinner; falling out of tree face first into your neighbours crotch).

Ultimately, I didn’t really like the overt sexist – and I’m not burning bras here – Mike’s advice would have made Don Draper blush. (Something Heigle complained about after it was released apparently). Also, I couldn’t stand Abby, for someone so determined and ambitious, she pretty quickly gives up all self-respect to follow Mike’s advice. Plus, she’s simply annoying. Not only do her and Mike lack chemistry, I kind of found myself hoping Mike would end up with one of the jello-twins instead.

2.5 of 5 – sassy, but not sexy. Those ‘Hollywood kisses’ weren’t believable for me.