So the Boz’ went and saw The Break Up as a date night. Since the Truthbringer was not invited we offered to write the review for him.
The Break Up starts at a Chicago Cubs game at Wrigley Field (establishing that the film takes place in Chicago) where Gary (Vince Vaughn) and his best friend (Jon Favreau),a Chicago White Sox fan, are watching the Cubs lose (nothing new). Gary spots Brooke (Jennifer Aniston) in their section with a dorky guy in plaid pants with his Cubs shirt tucked in. This leads to Gary hitting on Brooke and belittling her dweeby date until she agrees to go out with him. Cue credits. The credits show photos of Gary and Brooke having a wonderful relationship full of laughs and love. (Whether these two are actually dating in real life, who knows, but these photos certainly seem to demonstrate that they enjoy each other’s company).
Then comes the first scene. Brooke and Gary host a dinner with both of their families. Brooke does all the work (cooking, cleaning, etc.). Gary does nothing – he isn’t even showered when their first guests ring the doorbell. At dinner, Brooke’s family is embarrassing – especially her barbershop-quartet singer of a brother, Richard (John Michael Higgins, “Best in Show”). Gary gets mad. Brooke blows up. Gary blows up back. Brooke dumps Gary…hence the break up (see what they did there).
Here’s the catch (actually there’s two of them in this flick). First, Gary and Brooke own a condo together. So they’re stuck together, still fuming at each other, until the place sells. Secondly, Brooke still wants to be with Gary. She really just wants him to apologize to her and change his ways to be a better boyfriend. Basically, she feels underappreciated and thinks that if she leaves him he’ll see the error of his ways and come crawling back. But things don’t go as planned…
From there the story consists of Brooke humiliating Gary. Gary humiliating her back. And the aftermath of each humiliation. There you have it.
Amazingly, with that simple of a plot, it really, REALLY works in this movie. First off, the writing is phenomenal. Mr. & Mrs. Boz have had a few fights in their relationship (OK, you can stop laughing now). We KNOW what happens when a couple fights. Obviously the writers of this film (Jeremy Garelick & Jay Lavendar) have been in a few couples fights as well. They allow the fight to evolve. It isn’t an immediate blow up by Brooke or Gary. It builds and builds and builds until…KABOOM! It really feels like these two have been dating a while and they really know how to punch each other’s buttons.
Secondly, the acting in this film is really good. We never watched Friends. We never cared. We hate happy people. Happy people suck (OK, Mrs. Boz made me stop writing about Friends)…Anyways, we’ve only seen Jennifer Aniston in Office Space and this film. But she was great. She can actually act sad (ok, another Friends knock). She plays all aspects of emotion here and you genuinely feel for her when Gary consistently breaks her heart.
Vince Vaughn is equally good. He’s not playing anything really different here. He has similar characters in Swingers and Old School, but he plays that character very well. Here it is no different.
But the real gem in this film is the supporting cast. Vincent D’Onofrio plays Gary’s older brother in spectacular fashion. His ramblings steal every scene he is in. Joey Lauren Adams plays Brooke’s best friend and she’s the voice of reason for Brooke’s increasingly neurotic character. Judy Davis (who we’ve loved since “The Ref”) is Brooke’s eccentric artist boss. Her guru, if you may. She really chews on the scenery and again steals every scene she is in. (She’s the one who suggests Brooke get a “Telly Savalis” at the spa).
Final Analysis!
All in all, this was a chick flick that guys can appreciate (Mr. Boz gets hit for the term “chick flick”). This film shows how men AND women are both equally crazy when they’re crammed in a relationship together. Gary is shown as the ass hole in some scenes and a victim in the next. Brooke is equally bitchy and victimized. It’s a great date movie that is well written and well acted. You feel the highs and lows of a relationship and can walk out realizing you and your significant other are not the craziest couple on the planet. You’re just as crazy as everyone else.
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