10.20.2007

The Heartbreak Post

Years after the Ferrelly Brothers did There is Something About Mary along comes (Polly) the Stiller driven Heartbreak Kid. Considering the time both Stiller and his brand of comedy have had to develop, the similarities between the two films are to the degree that Heartbreak could have been Mary’s sequel and no one would have noticed*. That’s not to say that it wasn’t a funny movie, and didn’t have merit. There were scenes that where absolutely hilarious, and running jokes and gross-out moments that made me laugh out loud and wince at the same time. As far as a modern comedy goes this pretty much hits the mark, but wont win any awards or be remembered for long. It’s far from perfect, but perfection is impossible the way the genre stands at the moment. A Ferrelly film is a Ferrelly film and nothing more. Anyone going in expecting more than what you get is just foolish. As far as their films go though, this one beats out the majority of their past attempts by a wide margin.

It’s a proven fact that people will pay to see Ben Stiller wriggle out of awkward situations. It’s science. You can’t argue with science. He was in classic form (as was his father) in ‘Heartbreak, and fans won’t be disappointed. He does mix up the traditional Stiller-role enough to seem more mature and developed this time around, which is a breath of fresh air. And while there is a lot less physical comedy being relied on this time, it’s still Derek Zoolander under all that makeup and grey hair, so if that’s not your brand, then skip this one. The supporting cast does a decent job, and some of the sub characters are pretty funny in their own right. Carlos Mencia however is never, and will never, be funny. Why he made it onto a big screen I will never truly understand. I found the ending particularly clichéless, which is cool. Actually the film as a whole took a weird turn towards the last 15 minutes that kept my interest up, which I’m fine with considering all comedies these days spend the last half hour focusing on finality, not funny it seems.

*There where scenes in which Malin Akerman (Stiller’s annoying new wife) and Cameron Diaz’s Mary where one in the same.

No comments: