The Break-Up: Better Than the Critics Say

The runup to the new film “The Break-Up,” starring Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn, has been so long and loud that the critics seem to have taken hype as substance. Many reviewers across the nation, including at major newspapers in Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles, gave low grades to “The Break-Up” for not living up to expectations and not being as funny as other Vince Vaughn vehicles. Other sources, ones that I usually don’t take much stock in (like E! Online), gave better scores for a solid antidote to the common romantic comedy. I agree that “The Break-Up” does what it sets out to do: show what happens when a relationship DOES NOT have a Hollywood ending.

The premise of the story starts out like many romantic comedies: Gary (Vaughn) is a Chicago tour guide who runs a tour business with his two brothers (one of whom is the quirky Vincent D’Onofrio) and Brooke (Aniston) who works at as an art gallery saleperson. The two are united by their love for each other and an expensive condo in downtown Chicago. But things go amiss when the two fight over petty issues like cleaning the condo and entertaining guests and the two break up near the beginning of the movie. The fighting between Vaughn and Aniston was refreshingly realistic, as most movies have overacted disputes between poor actors. But the majority of “The Break-Up” is how the two live together in their condo while managing to annoy each other to no end. The two still harbor feelings for each other, but their need to remain supreme in the condo overshadows whatever they may feel for one another. I won’t reveal the ending here but many people found it disappointing. I found it refreshing and I think people who aren’t going to see a romantic comedy will agree.

The supporting cast includes Jon Favreau, Jason Bateman, and Joey Lauren Adams and they do a good job of fleshing out the role of friends on both sides of the argument. Favreau plays a hilarious and seedy foil to Vaughn’s good guy and the scenes between the two are reminiscent of their turns in “Swingers” or “Made.” Bateman is used sparingly but he plays a good straight man, as evidenced in “Arrested Development.” Adams is solid as Aniston’s friend who tries to turn the ongoing fight between the two into a psychological chess match. These characters, as well as Vaughn and Aniston, are given life by a great story authored mostly by Vince Vaughn. “The Break-Up” has hilariously awkward scenes, funny moments between Vaughn and the train of suitors that Aniston uses to make Vaughn jealous, and a more realistic look at the pitfalls in relationships. Naysayers should stay home and watch “Sleepless in Seattle” and those looking for something refreshing should go see “The Break-Up.”

Grade: B+