The Break-Up [HD]

"I want you to help me for a change"
In order to appreciate The Break-Up you really have to suspend disbelief at the reasons why a couple like Gary (Vince Vaughn) and Brooke (Jennifer Aniston) would actually come together in the first place. The film is well acted and fast paced and also entertaining, and it does a generally good job of showing what happens when love turns into a weapon of mutual destruction.

It's just I didn't quite buy the fact that a somewhat educated and cultured girl like Brooke who works as a art-gallery curator and likes going to the ballet would actually see in a working class schlep like Gary, a voluble if considerably doughy charmer who, with his two brothers (Vincent D'Onofrio) and Cole Hauser), runs a guided tourist service in Chicago.

If you can get beyond this strange lapse of logic, The Break-Up is a mostly fun and astute and features the lovely Jennifer and the clever Vince at their snappish best. The story itself is pretty slim: Brook and Gary meet at a Cubs game,...

Most of Us Will Be There
Realistic to the end. I've been involved with counseling many couples who break up and this movie hits the proverbial nail right on the head. Many break ups are "accidental". Many times persons who break up wish they could be back together. Many times the greatest danger comes when the problems are out in the open and persons attempt to save the relationship.

All of the cast does a good job. The characters are believable and make the viewer root for them, even the supporting cast. The viewer becomes emotionally glued to this film with a desire for these two to make it, but they always seem to just miss, even though both want it to work. This could be a healing film, but it is not a "feel good" film. This may be why so many viewers, expecting a light hearted comedy, gave it less than stellar reviews.

Most people who have experienced the breakup of a close relationship will see themselves in this film. About half of all marriages end in divorce and most...

Not What I Expected
I didn't see this film in the theater, so when I sat down to view The Break-Up I was surprised by the fact that it's less of a romantic comedy than a romantic drama. Sure there are some funny moments, but at its heart the film is about the relationship of Gary Grobowski and Brooke Meyers (played wonderfully by Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston) and how it explodes into a great mess. Vince Vaughn is great as the selfish Gary who doesn't understand why people just can't fall in line and do what he wants them to do. As his girlfriend, Brooke, Aniston shows some real acting chops and plays a character much more adult and well-rounded than Rachel from Friends. While the film focuses mostly on the characters of Gary and Brooke, the supporting cast is also top-notch. Two that really shine in the film are Jon Favreau as Gary's best friend and Vincent D'Onofrio as Gary's older brother, Dennis, who gets no respect from self-centered Gary. There is one scene in particular between them that...

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