The Break-Up
...pick a side.
Pushed to the breaking-up point after their latest "why can't you do this one little thing for me?" argument, art dealer Brooke (Jennifer Aniston) calls it quits with her boyfriend, Gary (Vince Vaughn), who hosts bus tours of Chicago. What follows is a series of remedies, war tactics, overtures and underminings suggested by the former couple's friends, confidantes and the occasional total stranger. When neither ex is willing to move out of the condo they share, the only solution is to continue living as hostile roommates until somebody caves.
But somewhere between protesting the pool table in the living room, the dirty clothes stacked in the kitchen cupboards and the sports played at sleep-killing volume in the middle of night, Brooke begins to realize that what she may be really fighting for isn't so much the place but the person.
Member Reviews
Good emotion in this break-up - napierslogs
When I first saw "The Break-Up" I was expecting your standard romantic comedy, but what I got was just a little bit different and it actually moved me.
The first parts of the movie are fairly typical, you know exactly how the girl (Jennifer Aniston) and the boy (Vince Vaughn) are going to behave, but it's still funny. And we also got to see enough of these characters that they weren't as thin and underdeveloped as your usual romantic comedy heroes and heroines.
Most of the actors, especially Jon Favreau, Jason Bateman, Joey Lauren Adams, John Michael Higgins, and Justin Long (huh, casting department must have something for 'J' names), are all great comedic actors, so they effortlessly add comedy to pretty much every scene. That makes breaking up much easier to take.
What I particularly enjoyed about "The Break-Up" is that it just tip-toes the line of predictability. You think you know what happens next, and you are almost right, but not entirely. That combination heightens the sense of comedy and heartache. I watch "The Break-Up" every time that it's on TV because it pulls emotion out of me in just the right way and the right amount.
Follow my blog Napierslogs' Movie Expositions at http://napierslogs.blogspot.comFunny, gritty and real. - thenewguy
This film isn't your typical romantic comedy, though many people will probably place it in that genre. At the beginning of the movie our two main characters break-up for much the same reason many couples break-up. The catch is, they still live together. Through the film they both try to move on while figuring out who gets to keep their condo.
The film is an interesting mix of funny moments with gritty fights between the two ex-lovers while they battle for the upper hand.
What I enjoy about this movie is while it's sort of the opposite of a romantic movie, it brings a lot of life to the characters. They express things people often wish to express in a relationship gone wrong and they do it with flair and, in some cases, comedy. This movie shows us that some couples don't live happy ever after and does it in a way many of us can probably relate to. Well worth seeing, though probably not with a date.It's all about managing expectations... - Stardust
A long time ago, I remember getting seriously frustrated with my roommate at the time. She had let me down time after time. And the sad thing was that she didn’t even realize it. I vented to another girl friend and she quite simply said, “You’ll have to learn to manage your expectations of that friendship.”
Aptly put. Same goes for movies. I don’t hold high expectations of movies that I predict will be a whole lot of smoke without a lick of flame to back it up. This way, I’m not always disappointed and sometimes I am pleasantly surprised.
The Break-Up was one of those pleasantly surprising movies. I was psyching myself up for some tough-to-bear scenes of embarrassing mayhem, and there were those (the singing at the dinner table, yikes!), but as the movie went on, I started to really feel for these two pathetic characters who just couldn’t seem to get back on track. Yes, we can all sit at home in our comfy chairs and say, “They’re doing it all wrong.” “They should be expressing how they feel instead of blaming each other.” “Real relationships aren’t like this.” But really, how many of us have screwed up in the heat of battle? How many of us have said things we wish we could take back? Or done things simply to spite someone we love because we’re hurting? And that’s why I really liked this movie. It was comforting to know that I am not the only one who says and does stupid things and then regrets them later. It was even more comforting to know that I’ve never gotten in as deep as these characters had.
The ending was probably the truest aspect of the whole movie. Things usually don’t turn out as you think they should. Even when you manage your expectations.
Member Reviews
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Good emotion in this break-up - napierslogs
When I first saw "The Break-Up" I was expecting your standard romantic comedy, but what I got was just a little bit different and it actually moved me.
The first parts of the movie are fairly typical, you know exactly how the girl (Jennifer Aniston) ...Funny, gritty and real. - thenewguy
This film isn't your typical romantic comedy, though many people will probably place it in that genre. At the beginning of the movie our two main characters break-up for much the same reason many couples break-up. The catch is, they still live together. Through ...It's all about managing expectations... - Stardust
A long time ago, I remember getting seriously frustrated with my roommate at the time. She had let me down time after time. And the sad thing was that she didn’t even realize it. I vented to another girl friend and she quite simply said, “You’ll have to ...