Truth and Lies

3.5/5

The Ugly Truth gives us plenty to sink our teeth into as we explore the world of men, women and relationships according to Mike (Gerard Butler), a small time cable show host. Introduced first to Abby (Katherine Heigl), a successful local television news producer, who has created a 10 fold list of requirements that a man must fulfill before she will even entertain the thought of a relationship. Obviously it goes without saying that this list has left her single and lonely. Finally a man (Eric Winter) who appears to measure up comes to her rescue. Thinking that he is the man she truly wants, but afraid that she may mess things up with her obsessive control issues and against her better judgment, she turns to Mike for guidance. Mike's advice seems to be helping to move things along quite well, however we realize that not all things may be as they seem...

The Ugly Truth at first seemed to be shaping up to be just another "awkward comedy". This made me a little nervous because although I love The Office and thought that I Love You, Man (read my review) was hilarious I wasn't sure that this movie could keep up. Though the movie had plenty of awkward moments, they were not what provided the most laughs. Shortly after Mike and Abby meet one another we move into stage 2 of the film; this part of the movie (which makes up the majority of the movie and laughs) reminded me a lot of Hitch, which I loved. Watching Abby force herself to do things she wouldn't normally do to keep her man while at the same time seeing the internal conflict build up was very well done and subtle enough that it didn't make me feel like the directors thought I was stupid.

Intentionally vulgar and bigger than life, Gerard Butler is a joy to watch. He keeps the movie together and moving forward. I didn't really know what to expect from the 300 star. His timing and delivery were surprisingly great, he definitely stepped up and took charge of this movie.

The supporting cast was wonderful. A comedy can easily fall flat with poor performances from the supporting cast. Georgia (Cheryl Hines) and Larry (John Michael Higgins) the anchors of Abby's show were especially delightful with all of their sidebar comments and facial expressions.

The Ugly Truth did, unfortunately, suffer from quite a number of forced and contrived scenes. One in the beginning when Abby calls into Mike's late night TV show seems like it was written as an after thought. Their interaction didn't reveal anything and wasn't used in any other part of the movie. There were several of these moments towards the end of the movie. I won't describe them because they reveal several plot points, but the scenes felt insincere.

Pros:
As with any great comedy, a wonderful supporting cast. Pulled from many different types of comedy, from the awkward to the goofy to the witty; a wonderful mix of different types of laughter.

Cons:
The language was strong, I expected it and it didn't throw me off, but it was still strong. However, unlike some movies with strong language where a lot of it doesn't seem truly conversational, it feels natural in The Ugly Truth. Some of the scenes felt slightly contrived.

Bottom Line:
A very funny movie that could go wrong in quite a number of directions, but manages to walk a very narrow line between too much and not enough. The cast is great and the script is intelligent while at the same time grounded. Even if Mike's relationship philosophy isn't entirely accurate or relevant it did provide some great moments and very funny lines.