By: debbie lynn elias
Opening in theaters everywhere on Friday, February 7, 2003, “How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days” is the perfect Valentine date movie. (Okay girls – the reminder is out there!) Starring the exuberantly effervescent Kate Hudson and one of Hollywood’s sexiest and most eligible bachelors, Matthew McConaughey, “How to Lose” has all the makings of a classic romantic comedy.
Kate Hudson stars as Andie Anderson, a perky little “How To” columnist journalist for the popular women’s magazine, “Composure” while McConaughey steps up as struggling ad exec and lifelong bachelor Benjamin Barry. Always in search of that “perfect” column, Andie concocts the idea of “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” – a scenario, and set-up, which will have her reel in a guy and then intentionally screw up the relationship making those god-awful mistakes we women have repeatedly made over and over and over again through the ages. (Some things we just never seem to learn.) And of course, what better target, than an avowed bachelor…like Benjamin. But this won’t be as easy as it seems because unbeknownst to Andie, Benjamin has made his own pact with the devil – make a woman fall in love with him in ten days and he gets to pitch his advertising ideas to the corporate mucky-mucks a diamond company. (Hopefully it’s DeBeers – they need all the help they can get.) As Andie tries to alienate Ben and Ben doggedly tries to hang in there and make her his, battle lines are drawn, hearts go pitter-pat and both wonder what the heck they’ve gotten themselves into because truth be told, they really are crazy about each other.
The team of relative newcomers Kristen Buckley and Brian Regan, those responsible for “102 Dalmatians” and Burr Steers, do a respectable job of translating the book of the same name by Michele Alexander and Jeannie Long and bringing it to the big screen and capitalize on the some of the Mars-Venus hilarity that all of us have experienced at some point and to which we can definitely relate. We’ve got Andie tricking Ben into a Celine Dion concert (in my youth – and even now – it was Barry Manilow); Andie interfering with the boys’ weekly poker game; Andie rearranging the apartment with very giddy and frilly girly items complete with those strategically, open and obviously placed feminine hygiene products, the sight of which is guaranteed to make most men walk out the door saying “I’ll see you next week.”; and of course, we’ve got Andie planning their future together (and this is one time Bill Gates should NOT be thanked for the versatility and genius of computers) complete with computer generated photographs of their future children. Yep, every man I know would be long gone by now…if they had even come through the door to begin with. But not so for Ben as he sees the bigger picture and wants that diamond account, so he hangs in there, giving the writers a chance to give us girls some wonderfully sweet and romantic scenes as this two-way con turns into a relationship and love that both try to deny. Unfortunately, the otherwise engaging script takes a wrong turn with the film’s climatic moments, taking two very likable characters, dummying them down and taking them out of character. Kudos though to Hudson, McConaughey and director Donald Petrie who overcome these shortcomings, albeit with some difficulty, and not without making the audience feel a bit shortchanged.
Hudson, in her first major lead role after wowing us with her supporting performance in “almost Famous,” is ideal as Andie. With a persona and laugh as infectious as that of her mother, Goldie Hawn, we can thank our lucky stars that the apple didn’t fall from the tree in this family. Even where the film falters, Hudson is enchantingly radiant. McConaughey also glides through his performance as Benjamin with a silky ease and his killer Southern charm and smile. And the chemistry between the two!! Talk about sparks! Better yet, let’s take it up a notch to “rockets red glare!” Again, another great pairing along the lines of Gere and Roberts, Roberts and Grant, Grant and Bullock, Grant and Hepburn and Grant and Bergman.
The supporting cast is equally as excellent with Kathryn Hahn, best known from television’s “Crossing Jordan,” as Andie’s best friend Kate and Adam Goldberg from “A Beautiful Mind” as Ben’s. Disappointing is the incomparable Bebe Neuwirth whose role as Andie’s straightlaced, non nonsense boss can only be described as limited at best. While Neuwirth’s performance is pitch perfect and so reminiscent as her best known character, “Lilith” from the long running television series, “Cheers” and “Frasier”, the writers missed a golden opportunity to exploit Neuwirth’s considerable comedic talents as a more involved element in Andie’s scheme. What a loss for the moviegoer.
And what can be said about director Donald Petrie. Responsible for such hits as “Miss Congeniality”, “Mystic Pizza”, “Grumpy Old Men” and “My Favorite Martian”, Petrie is clearly in his element and brings the whole package together as if gift wrapped and tied with a big red Valentine bow.
Andie: Kate Hudson
Ben: Matthew McConaughey
Director: Donald Petrie
Running Time: 116 minutes
