How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days

A cute magazine reporter is told to write an article about how she could lose a man in ten days and decides to do so, by picking up some poor schlep and treating him to all the wrong things that women do in relationships. Coincidentally enough (just go with it…it’s a movie), the guy that she picks up has also made a similar bet with his cohorts, claiming that he could make any woman fall in love with him in that same time frame. An incredibly dysfunctional “relationship” ensues.

Yet another cutesy romantic comedy starring two great Hollywoodians providing just enough chemistry, believability and humor, to entertain for an evening of fluffiness. Valentine’s Day lovebirds…line up! If you’re expecting CASABLANCA, you’ve stepped into the wrong theater, but if you’re down with an adorable Kate Hudson acting her ass off as the “bitch from hell” girlfriend, you’re in for some good times. Matthew McConaughey is also solid as the cool cucumber boyfriend, and takes his shirt off enough times to satisfy all droolers in the audience (drool, drool). The story does however, start off slow, with little humor in the first 20 minutes or so, but once the seeds of the respective bets are planted, the fun begins at a basketball game as the new girlfriend asks her loving new boyfriend to go get her a drink with…well, less than a minute left in a very close playoff game! Fun times ensue as Hudson rolodexes through every single girlfriend faux-pas (ladies, take notes), with a number of highly relatable bits for the audience. The mid-section of the film is taken up by much of that same type of goofiness, most of which had me cracking up here and there (the stuff during the poker game was especially humorous, the Celine Dion concert, as well as the name she gave his…”little” friend down there). And just when I was starting to get a little tired of the head games stuff, the flick transitioned into a more gentle area where both actors were able to play things straight, and actually came through as somewhat romantic, touching and credible.

Unfortunately for all involved, the last act of the picture is pretty lame as things go long and the more obvious bases are covered. I didn’t think much of the last 20 minutes brought a great deal more to the story, and I would certainly have advised at least 15 minutes be cut from the film as a whole (like the uncle farting idiocy or the entire back-story about the diamonds, etc…). The “duet” sung near the end was also not as funny as it seemed to think it was, and the marketing slogan for selling diamonds to ladies was just about the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard in any “faux” movie set around advertising (“Frost yourself”??) Thankfully, the film did provide for a number of humorous anecdotal moments in its mid-frame, and much like TWO WEEKS NOTICE, featured a couple of fine leads with charm, looks and acting chops to boot. It didn’t hurt that the Goldie Hawn “great ass” gene seems to have been successfully passed down to her daughter (love the yellow dress too-although no boobies to speak of) and that McConaughey continues to look “hunky” in all kinds of suits. In the end, this film will likely be enjoyed by anyone who has gone through their own share of “clingy” girlfriends with a number of laughs and enough overall entertainment to recommend to anyone looking for a fun night out with their honey. Watching it on video/dvd wouldn’t be the worst idea either, and no matter how you feel about it, you gotta admit that not many movies can incorporate the word “bullshit” into its romance…and make it work! And oh yeah, for anyone keeping score at home, keep an ear out for my penname used early on in the flick. Where’s my royalty check, man??

(c) 2021 Berge Garabedian