Two Comedies from The Weinstein Company

The Ex (May 9/07)

Though infused with a whole host of personable performances, The Ex adopts an increasingly routine and flat-out needless tone as it progresses - with the end result a distinctly uneven effort that's nevertheless entertaining enough to warrant a mild recommendation. Zach Braff stars as Tom Reilly, an amiable yet aimless slacker who agrees to take on a job with his father-in-law after the birth of his son. Problems emerge when Tom is paired up with Chip Sanders (Jason Bateman) at the office, as it's quickly revealed that Chip used to date Tom's wife (Amanda Peet's Sofia) and has never quite gotten over her. Director Jesse Peretz - working from David Guion and Michael Handelman's screenplay - initially does a nice job of imbuing the movie with an appropriately lighthearted touch, though one can't help but question the inclusion of several incongruously melodramatic subplots (ie Sofia's attempts to cope with her stay-at-home-mom status, a variation on the ubiquitous fake break-up, etc). Braff's effortlessly charismatic performance is certainly worth mention - as are the amusing cameos from folks like Amy Adams and Paul Rudd - yet there's little doubt that Bateman deserves the lion's share of praise thanks to his scene-stealing work as Tom's hilariously smug nemesis. In the end, The Ex generally comes off as an agreeable - if entirely forgettable - romantic comedy that, while never flat-out boring, isn't quite able to live up to the promise of its above-average premise.

At a running time of close to two hours, School for Scoundrels is clearly much longer than it has any right to be - although, that being said, there's little doubt that the film remains consistently watchable thanks to Todd Phillips and Scot Armstrong's surprisingly clever screenplay and the uniformly effective performances. Jon Heder stars as Roger, a timid meter maid whose life improves significantly as he begins attending self-help classes overseen by a vicious figure known only as Dr. P (Billy Bob Thornton). Roger's newfound good fortune comes to end end after Dr. P takes an interest in his would-be girlfriend (Jacinda Barrett's Amanda), and the two consequently embark on a campaign of one-upmanship and systematic humiliation. Though he's played his share of misanthropic characters over the last few years (including Bad Santa's Willie and Bad News Bears' Morris), Thornton - to his credit - avoids the temptation to simply regurgitate his past work and instead offers up an entertainingly mean-spirited performance that proves to be the highlight of the film. Director Phillips has wisely peppered the supporting cast with a whole host of funny folks, including Sarah Silverman, David Cross, and Horatio Sanz, and the movie is generally free of the melodramatic elements that sometimes plague comedies of this ilk. There's ultimately no question that School for Scoundrels would've benefited from some judicious editing, but it's equally clear that the movie is just about as entertaining and light-hearted as one might've hoped.