I am a sucker for anything involving Vince Vaughan (I will watch anything he is in, and still think Swingers is one of the greatest movies ever made), so I picked up the Break-Up.
Not sure what I think of it. I liked how realistic the fights were- circular reasoning, escalation, pettiness, etc., but I am not sure what I think about the movie in total.
ImJohnGalt
My understanding is that the director was going through a very difficult divorce while he was directing it. It was a great deal more cynical than I expected, and than (I feel) it was marketed.
kwaza
Let us know when you figure out what you think.
Bucky
I hated it. Wyy would I want to go watch a movie and watch a couple fight uncomfortably? It left me feeling dirty and akward
Mr Furious
My wife and I watched it the other day. Pretty good. I’m with you on Swingers. If you never saw “Go”, be sure to check it out. It was Doug Liman’s follow-up to Swingers. Best movie nobody’s ever seen.
JWeidner
Ditto. “Go” was a fantastic movie. I gotta see that again.
Krista
Shit, you could have saved your money and just re-read a bunch of old threads from here.
The Other Steve
I thought it was well done and funny. But it was a bit depressing perhaps. Although the ending kind of leaves you wondering what happens next.
Darrell
I agree Vince Vaughn is great. He’s hilarious without even trying. C’mon, ‘Break Up’ was brilliant from the get-go, starting with when Vaughn did the hot dog bit at the ballgame in order to meet Jennifer Aniston.. then the classic argument over washing dishes, and the ‘gay’ singing brother-in-law was brilliantly done. Too many highlights in that movie to mention here.
Btw, I watched “You, me and Dupree” a couple of nights ago.. that’s another one I think you’ll enjoy, starring Vaughn’s ex-sidekick Owen Wilson.
Justin
My girlfriend and I despised it. The humor seemed forced and predictable and watching them fight was painful (and not in the sense that a good drama is “painful”). As Bucky said: “Wyy (sic) would I want to go watch a movie and watch a couple fight uncomfortably?”
Mike P
I’m kind of with Bucky….I saw it on a plane of all places, and while I didn’t despise it, it definitely felt kind of hollow at the end…which, given the title, was probably the point.
The marketing for this movie certainly led one to believe it was going to be a romantic comedy whereas it was basically a re-enactment of the death of the modern relationship. I’m glad I didn’t pay to see it in the theater.
Pooh
I’m assuming that in your world, “Made” never happened to ruin VV’s otherwise perfect record…
FWIW, I second/third the nomination of “Go” – surprised that Sarah Polley never really took off afterwords
Underrated Vaughan movie = “Return to Paradise”
RonB
The Break-Up sucked. Saw it on the plane home from Korea. It was better than The Lake House, but nowhere near as good as Talladega Nights.
scs
I agree, I don’t know what to make of the Break-Up. I liked it intellectually, but found it cold and depressing emotionally. I often wondered why movies always just showed the early, heady days of a romance, when everything is new and exciting, and never the actual work of a relationship, thereby painting an unrealistic portrait of relationships. Now I know it’s because the rest of a relationship is depressing and boring to watch.
Krista
Boring? Probably. Depressing? Only if things are going badly. We probably all know couples who have been together a long time and are still very much in love. They’re probably boring/nauseating to watch, but depressing? Quite the opposite, frankly.
demimondian
Boring? I hope so — successful relationships are examples of hard work shared, at many levels. Like a long-distance move, a long-lasting relationship is something the participants want to be boring. Depressing? To the participants, probably not, but to outsiders…often yes. “They don’t seem to be excited by one another.” “She just takes care of him and the kids…what does she get out of it? What a waste.” “He works all the time, and she spends the money he earns…what’s in it for him? How depressing — he’s still young.”
scs
Well I was talking about unsuccesful relationships, which are probably I’m guessing 95% of relationships pre-marriage and about 75% post-marriage (50% divorce rate and half of undivorced, unhappy according to surveys)- so probably, I guess I’m talking only about 90% of relationships. The other 10%, I’m sure are just fine.
Sine.Qua.Non
I’m also a huge Vince Vaughn fan which is also the reason I picked up the film. Although there were moments of humor, there was much more of pain. I found myself floundering with a succinct reaction to the film. It was good, and well-acted by both characters – it was just rather depressing I guess, but completely realistic. I grew up on fairytale endings, so I guess I wasn’t expecting the film to end that way, the way most relationships often do end. Atypical games all the way, with every trap imaginable used. What we do to each other…. it sucks.
Tony Alva
A well acted, very real cronicle of the end of a live in relationship. The question my wife and I had after watching it this weekend was: Why do we want to see this?”
I don’t have to have all the questions answered in the movies I watch, but what about a dénouement…