Top Box Office Movies - How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003) Paramount Pictures
1 hr. 55 mins.
Starring: Kate Hudson, Matthew McConaughey, Adam Goldberg, Michael Michele, Shalom Harlow, Kathryn Hahn, Bebe Neuwirth, Thomas Lennon, Annie Parisse, Justin Peroff
Directed by: Donald Petrie

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days

Rating:

E-MAIL FRANK OCHIENG

Photo: Paramount Pictures

It’s a shame that a majority of modern day romantic comedies have no genuine clue about how they should effectively convey their appeal to a hungry movie audience. The immediate impulse is to go the gimmicky route, that is, to concoct some trivial-minded premise that appears cutesy and cozy in concept and let the tripe trappings take over. Well, this is certainly the case in director Donald Petrie’s breezy and manipulative romantic comedy How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.

This piece of dating dreck is so sticky sweet and syrupy that one would think they screened Petrie’s film at the International House of Pancakes! Screenwriters Kristen Buckley, Brian Regan and Burr Steers (Igby Goes Down) try desperately to untangle the feminist agenda as it challenges the skewed world of male-dominated sensibilities. The results are indeed anemic at best—How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days comes off as an inconsequential and flat satire about the perceptions and expectations of the clueless yet amiable clashing gender conflict.

Cute and energetic journalist Andie Anderson (Kate Hudson) is a “How To” columnist for Composure Magazine. Andie is assigned a new article to write that focuses on women’s careless mistakes (something we’re told that’s been an on-going problem for about two thousand years now) when in the process of losing their guy’s attention and affection. So naturally Andie heads out to research such a “phenomenon”. Enter hunky bachelor Benjamin Barry (Matthew McConaughey), an advertising exec looking to promote his ideas in order to secure the crafty acknowledgement of being taken seriously by the head honcho at the diamond company where he works at obliviously. Ben is in some need of respect and sets his sights on personally challenging himself in order to land that elusive exquisite diamond account.

The ball finally gets rolling when Andie spots the ideal target in the dapper-looking Ben. She makes him her fixation of choice and quickly establishes a pseudo-attraction in the attempt to carry out her mission on losing this particular guy within the initial ten days upon snuggling up with him under false pretenses. Once Andie establishes a romantic connection, she can “turn off” Ben by reinforcing some of the deplorable habits meant to…well…lose a guy in 10 days. This will then ensure the “legitimacy” of her Composure piece that she must submit in due time.

However, Andie doesn’t realize that Ben is playing her like some cheap guitar as well—his self-motivated bet is to woo her and make her fall deep in love with him within the same ten days that Andie plans to dump him for the inspiration of her written magazine assignment. And so the struggle begins—Andie has to ditch Ben while Ben has to avoid being ditched by Andie. But soon the head games being perpetuated on the vibrant couple based on their own motives soon begins to backfire when they find themselves really falling head over heels with one another. Thus the scheming that had been generated out of professional interest for the pair has now turned into something more of a personal and emotional empowerment for the two attractive individuals whom may have inadvertently found a worthy soul mate in one another.

Petrie (Miss Congeniality) definitely had the makings of a suitable romantic comedy but somehow botched the opportunity in favor of a cloying and klutzy narrative that doesn’t have much depth or direction in the giddy romancing department. No one can question the casting of lovable Oscar-nominated sweetie pie Hudson (Almost Famous) or the quite leading man tendencies of the underrated McConaughey (The Wedding Planner) as they make for an on-screen tasty tandem treat. But these capable performers are lost in the utter piffle of the lukewarm material they’re featured in to liven up.

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days definitely could have been a durable chick flick if it was only smart and sensible about its wacky premise. The first automatic thought that came to my mind was rather obvious: why would Hudson’s Andie need to do any research on something that’s so apparently basic and self-explanatory as losing a guy to begin with? The movie promotes the well-known notion that women have been making the common indiscretions of dissatisfying their male counterparts for centuries now so don’t you think that having a mere columnist go through the hoops just to bring this sentiment to her perceptive female brethren is a bit pointless, redundant and ridiculous? This is sort of like describing how junk food can be so appetizing and addictive for the tummy so then you aimlessly go out and work at a burger joint to confirm your convictions even though you’re well aware of the suspicions. Of course there would be no movie or jubilant purpose to this movie had the filmmakers properly reasoned out this revelation.

In the attempt to make Hudson’s Andie Anderson an adventurous free-spirit, the script calls for her to scare off McConaughey’s Ben by invading his space in flashy nonsensical fashion: suggesting that he accompany her to a “girlie” concert, infiltrating his comfy evening with the guys or hinting at domestic life complete with the responsibility of marriage and children—all sure signs to frighten a confirmed bachelor into further solitude. The shtick is occasionally funny and observational at times but does border on wearing thin on the nerves after awhile. As for making Hudson’s character a “committed” magazine journalist, this is supposed to ensure her strength and independence as a “creative contemporary working woman” demonstrating her tenacity while having it all in terms of her resilient individuality and cushy credibility. But again, this begs the question: would a “committed” journalist go through the hapless trouble of gaining insight into a familiar topical matter that she could have otherwise wrote about through sheer instinct or common sense know-how?

While the chemistry between Hudson and McConaughey is formidable, the predictable consequences that ensue are gratingly typical in its by-the-numbers plodding: see lovey-dovey Andie and Ben find a mutual connection based on their deception, see irksome Andie and Ben find discontentment based on the discovery of their deception or see how Andie and Ben can overcome their hurt feelings after the deception, etc. The supporting cast doesn’t register as much as it should to provide the decent fodder for the swinging involvement regarding Andie and Benjamin’s union. Kathryn Hahn and Adam Goldberg do the obligatory hokey “best friend” honors for the two leads in an arbitrary manner. And the ubiquitous and talented Bebe Neuwirth (Tadpole) is totally wasted here as the uptight boss at Andie’s Composure office.

Hence, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days will probably end up in the faceless pile of hokum-induced romantic comedies hoping to find new vitality as a Lifetime cable TV movie in a couple of years or so. Petrie’s soggy exposition was a well-meaning proposition with its futile gesture for adding a unique spin on the relationship between the social mysteries of the inquisitive sexes. The saving grace for this film is its chippy reliable lead players as well as the pithy soundtrack that gleefully soothes the senses despite the chewy goings-on.

Sadly, this misguided and sappy kiss-and-tell dud encouraged me to write my own magazine expose’: How to Lose the Rave Review of a Film Critic Guy in 10 Minutes!

Click here to comment on this review or post your own thoughts.

Frank Ochieng
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