The Break-Up

The results are decidedly mixed, but were it not so crass, this film might actually have qualified as a decent film | Andrew Coffin

Trading on the enormous popularity of stars Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston (and their highly public off-screen romance), The Break-Up is advertised as a light romantic comedy. But The Break-Up (rated PG-13 for sexual content, some nudity and language) begins where most romantic comedies leave off, and is probably not the film audiences are expecting.

A cutesy introduction by Gary (Mr. Vaughn) to Brooke (Ms. Aniston) and their courtship are dispensed with during the opening credits. What follows is, true to the film's title, a document of their extended, painful breakup. The results are decidedly mixed, but were it not so crass, The Break-Up might actually have qualified as a decent film.

There's a refreshing honesty to both the concept and the execution of this anti-romantic comedy. Most romantic comedies end with an emotionally satisfying but empty and ambiguous fulfillment of romantic longing. Rarely does the audience actually get to see what the happy couple will face when they live together or make some sort of long-term commitment to the relationship.