Ira & Abby (2006) or, Marriage Never Works

♥

+ 2nd Worst Movie of the Year

A not very informative nor aesthetically pleasing or memorable poster for Robert Cary's Ira & Abby

Ira leaves a stranded relationship and his many years of fruitless therapy, as he starts a new, impulsive relationship to the very different Abby, and the two decide to get married quickly. - Too quickly.

Ira & Abby is written by Jennifer Westfeldt (Kissing Jessica Stein (2001)), who also plays Abby in the film, and directed by Robert Cary (Anything But Love (2002)). It is a very bad example of a quirky New-Yorker indie movie of crossing fates, - a type of movie that has masterpiece examples such as Woody Allen's Anything Else (2003) and Raymond De Felitta's City Island (2009). This one isn't funny, romantic or compelling dramatically. Mostly it serves as a reminder for us as to why it is that we don't live in New York, whose therapy-padded, infantile adults are the subjects of Ira & Abby.
Supporting actors Frances Conroy (Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated (2010-13)) and Fred Willard (Everybody Hates Chris (2009), TV-series) are sympathetic here, but also they have, - just like everyone else in this film, - a hopeless marriage.
Ira & Abby is a downright marriage-hating film, which is hard to enjoy at all for us who don't share this opinion. This doesn't mean that it doesn't also strike on an odd truth or two, but it doesn't really help it, since it is both boring, uncinematic and depressing, while it does so.

Related posts:

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2006 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

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2006 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]

Here's a video of Westfeldt and Jon Hamm, who also has a small role in Ira & Abby, who talk about their relationship, (they were together for 18 years before splitting up in 2017), and their movie together, Friends with Kids (2011)

Cost: Estimated 3.5 mil. $
Box office: 563k $
= Box office disaster (returned 0.16 times the cost)
[Ira & Abby premiered 23 June (Los Angeles Film Festival, California) and runs 104 minutes. Shooting took place in New York. The film opened #57 in 7 theaters to a 36k $ first weekend in North America, where it never attained a higher position although it widened to 20 cinemas, grossing 211k $ (37.5 % of the total gross). This was the film's 2nd biggest market. The biggest was Mexico with 244k $ (43.3 %), and the 3rd biggest was Central America with 54k $ (9.6 %). The film was only released in 5 markets. Cary returned with Save Me (2007), his last directorial effort to date. Westfeldt returned in 5 TV-series and a TV movie in the following years and theatrically in Friends with Kids (2011). Chris Messina (The Newsroom (2012-14)) returned in Medium (2007, TV-series), Security (2007, short) and theatrically in Towelhead (2007). Ira & Abby is fresh at 67 % with a 6.1/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Ira & Abby?