+ Best Crazy-Comedy of the Year
 |
| Ben Stiller and his co-stars are highlighted in some funny moments from the film on this poster for Bobby and Peter Farrelly's The Heartbreak Kid |
Eddie is our sympathetic protagonist here, who meets a sweet woman and gets pressured into a quick wedding to her by his encouraging father and friend. But on the following honeymoon she turns out to have been the completely wrong choice, a disaster, meanwhile he falls for someone else ...
The Heartbreak Kid is written by Scot Armstrong (Semi-Pro (2008)), Leslie Dixon (Freaky Friday (2003)), Kevin Barnett (Hall Pass (2011)) and co-writer/director brothers Bobby and Peter Farrelly (Dumb and Dumber (1994), both), remaking the Elaine May/Neil Simon-created The Heartbreak Kid (1972).
The film is an incredibly wacky round of Farrelly zaniness, led by a top-motivated Ben Stiller (Arrested Development (2005-18)). His real-life father Jerry Stiller (Cousins (2013)) and Rob Corddry (Childrens Hospital (2008-16)) are funny as Eddie's father and friend, respectively, who act as his dubious advisers. Michelle Monaghan (Blindsided (2013)) is sweet as the real romantic interest, and Malin Akerman (Catch .44 (2011)) is a nightmare as the bride. The Heartbreak Kid works as a loose romantic crazy-comedy that has a lot of laughs along the way, (Danny McBride (Alien: Covenant (2017)) also supplies his share of them.)
SPOILER The ending goes for one last, sardonic tail on Eddie's predicaments instead of that whiff of Hollywood romance that I for one was sighing for after watching Stiller's many unenviable situations throughout the movie. The Heartbreak Kid also has poor posters and a reused title that doesn't really fit the film. - But it's a gaga fun train nonetheless!
Related posts:
Peter & Bobby Farrelly: Dumb and Dumber To (2014) or, Harry and Lloyd: Still Dumb and Lovin' It!
2011 in films - according to Film Excess
Hall Pass (2011) - The Farrelly brothers' probably worst film to date
2007 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]
2007 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
Dumb and Dumber/Dumb & Dumber (1994) - The Farrellys brothers and Carrey/Daniels' comedy classic
Watch a politically incorrect, early wedding scene from the film here, - and if this makes you laugh, you'll like the film
Cost: 60 mil. $
Box office: 127.7 mil. $
= Flop (2.12 times the cost)
[The Heartbreak Kid premiered 27 September (Westwood, Hollywood, Los Angeles) and runs 116 minutes. The Farrelly brothers wanted the film to have the title The Seven Day Itch, humorously riffing on the classic Marilyn Monroe-starring marriage comedy The Seven Year Itch (1955), but they lost a lawsuit (likely to Fox, the studio behind the film) and were pushed instead to reuse the Heartbreak Kid title. Shooting took place in Mexico and California, including San Francisco and Los Angeles from September 2006 - ?. Some nudity was reportedly cut from a sex scene in the film. It opened #2, behind holdover hot The Game Plan, to a weak 14 mil. $ opening weekend in North America, where it spent another week in the top 5 (#5) and grossed disappointing 36.7 mil. $ (28.7 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Germany with 11.6 mil. $ (9.1 %) and the UK with 9.9 mil. $ (7.8 %). Roger Ebert gave the film a 2/4 star review, translating to two notches harder than this one. The Farrelly brothers returned with an episode of Unhitched (2008, TV-series) and theatrically with the awful Hall Pass (2011). Stiller returned in Curb Your Enthusiasm (2004-07), Elmo's Christmas Countdown (2007, TV movie) and theatrically in Tropic Thunder (2008). The Heartbreak Kid is rotten at 29 % with a 4.6/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]
What do you think of The Heartbreak Kid?
No comments:
Post a Comment