Photo by Saeed Adyani/Columbia Pictures
Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler star, spar and come to terms in "The Ugly Truth."
If romantic comedies -- or "chick flicks," as they're rather revealingly now labeled -- are aimed at women, why do they always seem to let men off the hook?
Photo by Saeed Adyani/Columbia Pictures
Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler star, spar and come to terms in "The Ugly Truth."
Abby Richter is a romantically challenged morning show producer whose search for Mr. Perfect has left her hopelessly single. She's in for a rude awakening ...
Rating: R for sexual content and language
Length: 96 minutes
Released: July 17, 2009 Sneaks
Cast: Gerard Butler, Katherine Heigl, Cheryl Hines, Bonnie Somerville, Bree Turner
Director: Robert Luketic
Writer: Nicole Eastman, Karen McCullah Lutz
A predictable if potty-mouthed opposites-attract sitcom of a romcom, "The Ugly Truth" is yet another film that exploits the particularly heinous fantasy that a woman who puts her faith in a rotten man will be rewarded when she exhumes the heart of gold beneath the lumpen clay of his golem exterior, while the happy-go-lucky man is under no obligation to alter his crude and insulting behavior. Without even trying, he's sure to attract a beautiful and smart professional woman to be his rescuer, especially if he's as ruggedly charming as Gerard Butler, the "über-moron misogynist" who enters the life of neurotic "control freak" TV producer Katherine Heigl in "The Ugly Truth."
A mother lode of content for any film theory major writing a thesis on sexual attitudes and stereotypes in 21st century comedy, the movie gets off to a problematic start with an opening-credits song in which Katy Perry sings, "You can change your mind like a girl changes clothes," and also gives lyrical shout-outs to the terms "PMS" and "bitch." As if on cue, here comes Heigl as Abby, a Sacramento morning-show producer who is presented as an on-the-move, jargon- spouting, insta-decision- maker, as if she were a NASA scientist working against the clock to save the Earth from extinction in "Deep Impact."
Although the screenplay (credited to Nicole Eastman, Kirsten Smith and Karen McCullah Lutz) describes men as "simple" creatures aroused only by a woman's looks, the super-attractive Abby can't keep a man interested after a first meeting, apparently because she arrives at dates with a printout of talking points and a checklist of marriage- worthy attributes. "Kudos on your comprehensive car insurance plan," she tells one suitor.
Her approach changes after a controversial and rough-edged public-access host named Mike (Butler) is hired to boost the ratings of Abby's sagging program with his sexist, tell-it-like-it-is romantic advice. Abby can't stand Mike, until he helps her attract the attention of her handsome new neighbor (Eric Winter), a cat-loving surgeon.
At this point, the movie borrows from such respectable sources as "Pygmalion" and "Cyrano de Bergerac," as Mike molds Abby into a man-magnet while also coaching her on her dates through a hidden earpiece. It's not giving anything away to reveal that Abby and Mike's clash of personality eventually gives way to a clinch.
"The Ugly Truth" would be unbearable if not for the appeal of its stars, especially Heigl, still seeking a worthy followup to her breakout role in "Knocked Up." In addition to giving them their leading lady, that Judd Apatow production apparently influenced the makers of this new film to include enough gratuitous crudities and "frank" body part references (including an excruciating discussion about masturbation) to ensure "The Ugly Truth" would earn an "R" rating. Profanity aside, the movie will be right at home on network television; director Robert Luketic (regressing since "Legally Blonde") stages every scene with bland functionality.
-- John Beifuss: 529-2394
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