Movie Review: My Super Ex-Girlfriend

My Super Ex-Girlfriend

I'm a big believer in movies as entertainment. Sure, movies can educate and move, too, but isn't entertainment really the point even if nothing else happens to serve in a given film? That's why you shouldn't find it too surprising that I actually looked forward to seeing My Super Ex-Girlfriend. I knew from the beginning I had no business expecting an Oscar™-winner, but I did think I might be amused. It's good to know that I was half right: My Super Ex-Girlfriend is no Oscar™-winner.

In the beginning scenes of My Super-Ex Girlfriend, we learn that mild mannered architect Matt Saunders (Luke Wilson) has now been six months without a girlfriend. This is a state of being that his best friend, Vaughn Haige (Rainn Wilson) is not inclined to let go on. As a result, Vaughn prods Matt to approach a woman (Uma Thurman) on the subway.

Though reluctant to interrupt the woman — who is quietly minding her own business as she reads — Matt moves to her side more to shut Vaughn up than for any other reason. Looking back at his pushy friend, he dutifully clears his throat and asks if he might buy her a cup of coffee sometime. The woman doesn't hesitate. She tells him, "No!" in no uncertain terms, and goes back to her book. But just as the train pulls into the station, a man rushes by and steals her purse on his way out the door. Without a thought, Matt gives chase.

When Matt eventually recovers her purse in a series of incidents combining both luck and determination, the woman relents. Introducing herself as Jenny Johnson, she agrees to have dinner with Matt. Vaughn is delighted, and so is Matt's pretty co-worker, Hannah (Anna Faris). Hannah hasn't been as pushy as Vaughn, but she's also delighted to see Matt moving on.

Fortunately for all concerned, Matt not only thinks Jenny is attractive, but he finds her interesting as well (albeit a bit odd). What Matt doesn't know is that his every move is being closely watched by the nefarious Professor Bedlam (Eddie Izzard). Of course, he also doesn't know that the mild-mannered Jenny Johnson is really the much loved superhero G-Girl, and that Professor Bedlam has his reasons for keeping tabs on her and anyone else — especially men — with whom she comes in contact.

Along with her super powers, Jenny turns out to be super insecure as well. Though Matt likes her, nothing could be enough to make up for her jealousy, possessiveness, and out of control temper. With Vaughn's advice to bolster him, Matt tries to let Jenny/G-Girl down gently. Needless to say, she doesn't take it well and is determined to exact revenge.

With looming crises on the job, Professor Bedlam's now overt interference, and fears of Jenny's next appearance in his life, Matt scarcely knows what to do next. Should he run away? Should he face Jenny's wrath? And what about his chances for any future relationships?

I'm not a big Luke Wilson fan, and this movie certainly didn't help his cause in my mind. He's okay, but I didn't buy his confusion or his courage in this film, and his comedic abilities are significantly less than those of his brother, Owen Wilson. Uma Thurman, on the other hand, is rarely less than stellar, and she doesn't disappoint here. She takes hold of the melodramatic script, chews it up and spits it out with aplomb, and smartly moves on to the next scene.

Rainn Wilson (perhaps best known as the geekish Dwight Schrute on NBC's hit comedy, The Office) is fine in his supporting role, as is Anna Faris. Wanda Sykes also puts in an appearance in a small role, though she plays pretty much the same character she always does. Eddie Izzard is the best of the supporting cast, and his own skills make him a worthy counterpart for Thurman's heroine.

Director Ivan Reitman (who has such comedy classics under his belt as Ghostbusters and Stripes) does an adequate job of putting the parts and pieces of performances and effects together. Writer Don Payne (among other things, his résumé boasts a number of episodes of TV's The Simpsons) has put together a script, however, that never quite lives up to its potential. The jokes ramp up just fine, but they fizzle before they get the laugh; the melodrama never quite reaches the point where it would be laughable, either. In fact, the only thing (aside from a couple of the performances) that works here is some of the special effects.

My Super Ex-Girlfriend had the potential to be one of those really silly movies that was really fun to watch (here's a really good place to mention Ghostbusters again). Instead, despite good performances and production values, this one just doesn't make it over the hump. That's too bad, because without that missing little extra "oomph," it's only silly and frankly not much of that.

FAMILY SUITABILTY: My Super Ex-Girlfriend is rated PG-13 for "sexual content, crude humor, language, and brief nudity." That's probably just about right. The sexual content isn't graphic, but it's there and more than once; the crude humor, language, and brief nudity aren't "in your face," but are probably unsuitable for kids younger than 11 or 12. In fact, 11 or 12 year-olds are probably just about the only age group that are actually going to like My Super Ex-Girlfriend. If your kids want to go, I can't argue strongly against them seeing it, but I'd recommend you buy yourself a ticket to something else.