It won't make history but that doesn't mean it's bad... (How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days (DVD))

Member Name: eilidhcatriona

Product:	How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days (DVD)
Date:	26/06/09 (57 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Delivers what you expect

Disadvantages: Makes you cringe...

Right from the outset, let's be clear about one thing...a film called "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" is not going to make cinematic history. It's not going to be groundbreaking, it's not going to be comparable to the Citizen Kanes, Godfathers and Star Wars of our world. So I'm going to judge it based on what it is - a romcom, a chick flick, etc etc.

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days was released in 2003. I bought it recently on DVD, having been in the mood for some harmless romantic entertainment, however I had seen it previously (can't remember whether it was at the cinema or not...irrelevant really). I paid £3.98 from Amazon, which I think is good for a DVD - I've been trawling their cheap DVD section recently, and they do have some good stuff in there.

The film stars Kate Hudson as Andie Anderson, a journalist for Composure magazine (pretty much Cosmopolitan), and Matthew McConaughey as Ben Barry, an advertising executive. I'm wary of giving away too much of the plot, but here's a basic summary which you can find anywhere - Andie needs to find a man to use as a guinea pig for her article on (you guessed it) how to lose a guy in 10 days , about the common dating mistakes made by women. Ben meanwhile, is challenged to make a woman fall in love with him in 10 days in order to win the right to pitch for a major contract. You can probably guess what happens next...

I like romantic comedies. I'm a bit of a sucker for the boy meets girl, everything is great, things go a bit wrong, happy ending sort of film. And How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days ticks all the romcom boxes - attractive lead actors, quirky best friends, odd but loveable bosses, things going right, things going badly, and the big finale.

Hudson and McConaughey work well together in this film (although not, I've heard, in their next outing Fools Gold). They seem relaxed and there is on screen chemistry between them. Both play their characters well, although its probably not a stretch - the characters are fairly straightforward. However I though Hudson played Andie well, as she has to show "multiple personalities" in her attempts to "lose" Ben.

I enjoyed watching this film second time round, and I know I enjoyed it first time as well. But one thing I had forgotton is how cringeworthy it is, in many places. The lengths that Andie goes to in order to drive Ben away had me burying my face in a cushion, it really does make for uncomfortable viewing. Don't get me wrong, it's not cringey because it's bad, I suppose the fact that it made me feel like that shows that the film is good, and that Hudson played her slightly crazy girlfriend role very well.

There are some parts of the film which don't entirely fit, it almost feels like there's something missing. There is a section where Andie and Ben visit Ben's parents, and Andie is herself, not the crazy girl trying to drive him away. No explanation is given for this, and there is no gentle transition from crazy to normal. It makes sense once you get a little further along in the story, but at the time I felt like I had missed a scene. This is however a small complaint, and on the whole the film flows along nicely - having a set timeframe of 10 days means that we see the characters every day, which I think is good for building the story, rather than having to miss out days in the timeline.

The soundtrack wasn't bad, and a lot of the music was actually part of the storyline, that is being played by the characters. However I have to be honest and say that not much of it has stuck with me, so although it was good in the film it was not very memorable. Except, that is, for You're So Vain by Carly Simon. It's stuck in my head and is slowly driving me mad...

All in all, this is a pleasant romantic comedy with two good lead actors which does what it says on the tin. Well, it delivers what you'd expect anyway - romance, comedy, good looking Americans...So reviewing this purely as a romcom, and not expecting earth-shattering brilliance in the bigger picture of cinema in general, I'm going to give this 4 stars, because it is good but maybe just a little too cringey.

There is a "making of" commentary on the DVD, but I can't comment on that as I'm not terribly interested in watching it, all I wanted was the film.

Summary: A good romantic comedy, worth a watch if you want something funny and easy to watch