The Break-Up (July 21st 2006)
Director: Peyton Reed
This film is a lot like a summer fling. At first, you’re instantly attracted to the thought of seeing Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn hook up in a film which oddly parallels Aniston’s own real life drama with ‘Brangelina’. But the sparks soon fizzle out as you realise that The Break-Up is not very much fun to watch, and you can forget about it surprisingly quickly once it’s over. |
 |
Vaughn is ‘Gary’, a blue collar tour guide who wants nothing more than to relax playing video games or shoot some pool. Aniston plays ‘Brooke’, an art gallery assistant who wants her boyfriend to say thank you once in a while. The classic ‘opposites attract’ principle is complicated by the (one of many) arguments in the film. Put simply, Brooke wants Gary to help do the dishes, then he makes excuses because he doesn’t want to do the dishes, then she gets annoyed when he doesn’t want to do the dishes, then he gets angry that she wants him to want to do the dishes, get it? The mismatch gets ugly when the pair is forced to share a condo because they cannot afford a mortgage alone. This is when their wild urges to make each other jealous turn into a series of tit for tat games which don’t really seem funny enough to entertain or serious enough to be provocative. At this point you’ll find the cinema walls will start caving in as Brooke and Gary find harsher ways of upsetting each other.
The storyline was a bit messy and many of the subplots did feel unnecessary. I think all the narrative weakness originated from the fact that the whole film was about one break-up, so in that way it feels in some ways incomplete and you are left wanting more. The leads largely play themselves. Vaughn just seems like a less funnier version of his previous film roles whilst Aniston is remarkably similar to Rachel from Friends (there are even snippets which feel like they have been directly edited from Friends episodes i.e. Aniston banging ferociously at a Pictionary board and later walking around her flat in the buff). In fact the whole film felt a lot more like a dragging sitcom episode than a movie.
The film does however present us with real relationship woes and, being an oft-frustrated girlfriend, I can steadfastly admit that I did identify with Aniston’s character a few times. That said, this film is not a rom-com or even a fun chick flick, but its attempt to be a serious examination of a typical relationship is hindered by awkward comedic punctures throughout the whole film. As a result, it is neither funny nor serious. In fact, there were times when the film was as painful to watch as a break up is as painful to do.
In the end, we are made to understand the characters’ flaws to the extent where neither of them are very likable and they even border on annoyance. The film’s slogan is, ‘pick a side,’ - in reality we all sympathised with Jennifer over Brad - here you don’t plumb for either side. On the bright side, the quirky secondary roles are arguably more entertaining than the leads – Jon Favreau is really good as Gary’s best mate, despite probably having the fewest lines. Similarly, the film is set in Chicago which gives it an interesting twist that reminds you of the old 1940s romances. The characters’ real work lives are also addressed which adds some credible realism to the film; it gives a sense of normalcy so we are made to think that this couple’s relationship and work issues reflect how peoples’ lives really are.
The Break-Up is one of those films where you could’ve watched the trailer in order to see pretty much all the best bits of the movie. Whilst Aniston’s acting does deserve some merit, Vaughn’s humour seems repetitive and clichéd. The onscreen chemistry you would expect from all the hype around their real life relationship is sadly unfounded in this ‘will they-wont they’ film which feels a lot more like a diary entry…in a sitcom episode. The end, however, was good. I’ll try not to spoil it but I will tell you that it’s pleasantly unpredictable. On the other hand, my other half who was also watching thought it was a cop-out of an ending. Suffice to say, The Break-Up is the type of film you either like or hate. It should come with a disclaimer notice though: Do not watch on the first date, you’ll find your companion will gradually loosen their grip on your hand throughout the film!