Movie Review: Failure To Launch (2006)
Critical Movie Critic: General Disdain | Published on: April 1, 2006 |
Filed under: Comedy, Romance
Directed By: Tom Dey
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Sarah Jessica Parker, Zooey Deschanel, Justin Bartha
IMDB Link: Failure To Launch
Movie Trailer: Trailer
Everyone, including myself, likes a good romantic comedy every now and then. After watching a few of the trailers for Failure To Launch, I figured it was that time.
Failure To Launch is basically like all the romantic comedies before it. Good looking man (this time played by Matthew McConaughey) has a phobia or quirk (this time: 30-something year old, living with parents) about him that makes it difficult for him to meet the right lady (this time played by Sarah Jessica Parker) — yet in the end they manage to make it work. As in most cases this tried and true method works — as it does here.
Why does it work? The main reason is the movie doesn’t take itself too seriously. Many movies in this genre can, at times, actually believe the shit they’re selling. That’s not the case with Failure To Launch. Mixed into the love story, are some very stupid parts, that the writers try to make sense of in the end. McConaughey gets attacked by a chipmunk and a dolphin and some strange lizard while rock climbing. Only at the end do we come to find out it was because he was out of harmony with nature, but the scenes themselves were quite stupid. Another overwhelming reason for success is that the movie stars two very good looking actors. Matthew McConaughey has to be at the top of People Magazine’s top 10 good looking people. And he generally seems likable and friendly – maybe it’s his southern roots. Sarah Jessica Parker, she’s an enigma. One helluva of a fantastic body – but a face that makes you want to turn your eyes away. Almost as if God put a horse head on the body of a Playmate. Yet, her friendly persona makes her a great fit for this kind of movie. Also, sprinkled throughout the movie are some very funny moments. Terry Bradshaw roaming around naked through his house will give you some mixed emotions. Zooey Deschanel, Parker’s roommate, steals a great many scenes by offsetting Parker’s exuberence with her character’s melodramatic self-loathing.
All said, if you need a moment to just have a relaxing time, watch some good looking folks have fun, then Failure To Launch is for you.
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About: General Disdain I'm an old, miserable fart set in his ways. Some of the things that bring a smile to my face are (in no particular order): Teenage back acne, the rain on my face, long walks on the beach and redneck women named Francis. Oh yeah, I like to watch and criticize movies. |
Nashtradomus posted a response on: May 10, 2006 | Reply
Failure to launch is a certified chick flick with a predictable story line. If you’re looking for something deep with Oscar worthy performances, direction, and details, this isn’t your movie. But, you probably know that from the title. The plot is weak if not lame with lots of holes. But that is okay, since you know when you go watch this movie, you are there not to think but to be entertained.
I will give the Cliff Notes version. First of all let it be said, I am not opposed to chick flicks, and I can watch aimlessly stupid movies as much as the next guy but wow….
First off, not to give away the movie, but the boy gets the girl, and I could not have cared a less. She was essentially a commercial worker who did not sleep with her clients, so not even the good kind of worker either. NO CLIENT SATISFACTION!! I still feel sorry for the “loser” guy she had in the diner who fell in love with her in 2 minutes. We do not see what happened to him, but she obviously left him and broke his heart. Poor guy, mean girl!
Matthew’s character was a womanizer who we are later to feel sorry for as we find that he had the love of his life die. When we find this out this is to make the whole concept of him living at home make sense, and we are to feel sorry for him, and Sarah is to repent her task of making him fall in love with her, as she did not know this from the start. Even if this was the basis for him needing to live at home (I still don’t get that), at least clean up after yourself while you are there. I could go on and on with this as it became such an important revelation, but I did not get the relevance as it related to his squandering his life (didn’t stop him from sleeping around and sponging off his parents).
This movie could have been cute and likable with some small tweaks in script and some decent editing, but the countless errors in judgement, and again the most anticlimactic ending where they profess their love for each other (professing her love for him in a 1 minute not so moving speech, would not have gotten me to forgive someone I had last told to fucking get out of my car). I mean her speech was terrible. She looked great, but I would think it would have taken more than that to make me fall in love with her (like finding out something about her that wasn’t 100% based on lies).
Alright now, enough bad mouthing the movie, it has certain moments of unrelated fun and frolic which you could giggle and chuckle at. I rate this movie C.