Originally, this movie was titled Fast Track, since it's about an up-and-coming marketing guy who's on the proverbial way up at his father-in-law's firm. But then it was changed to The Ex, which shifted the focus from the workplace to the home. But let's get this straight: Either name is infinitely better then the unhealthy dollop of mean-spirited junk that appears after the title card on the screen.
Tom (Zach Braff) has been fired from his job as a chef at a hoity-toity restaurant, so he and his wife Sofia (Amanda Peet) and their newborn baby schlep from New York to Ohio, where Sofia's dad Bob (Charles Grodin) has not only set Tom up with a new job but also has procured a nice little house for them to raise their new family in. Aww, ain't that sweet. But things don't start off well for Tom at the marketing firm, which turns out to be both new age and, well, wacko. You know, a place where such "creative" aspects as casual dress, unwalled offices, an imaginary ball of ideas or something abound. Tom has some issues with fitting in with the eclectic, quirky crew, but more importantly he clashes immediately with his new supervisor, Chip (Jason Bateman), who just happens to be a former schoolmate of Sofia. Oh, and a paraplegic, of course.
But don't worry; although it seems like this is a romantic comedy about jealousy and redemption, about a young couple getting past their differences to survive as a unit, it's set up to be more like a slapstick comedy, with many jokes at Chip's expense. (Which is okay, because Chip is a real jerk.) The sad reality, though, is that the movie fails at both genres. Women won't like it, because there's no real romance, no genuine feelings on anyone's part. (Sorry to generalize, ladies.) Guys won't like it, because there's not nearly enough physical humor. That would be fine, except there's hardly any subtle humor, either. What you're left with is just vicious, mean-spiritedness that drains every ounce of humor from an otherwise talented cast.
Braff's not terrible, but I never got the sense that he was, well, believable as someone women would desire. But what do I know, I'm a straight male. The affection between him and Peet seemed forced, tentative, and unnatural, sort of like unwilling siblings. Peet wasn't bad, either, but she didn't have much to work with - on a positive note, she doesn't come off as icily unappealing as she does in most of her other films.
And man, check out Charles Grodin. I had to check to see who was playing Sofia's dad - Grodin, who hadn't been in a movie in 13 years, looks about 85 years old here. I thought he was Bob Eubanks. There's one scene, too, in which Bob utters the f-word. For no freaking reason other than to have Charles Grodin, septuagenarian, drop an f-bomb.
Interestingly enough, the unrated version of the movie runs about five minutes shorter than the rated one that was seen in theater. And, having seen the unrated one, I couldn't tell you about any particular scenes that were so raw that they would have pushed the rating to an unwanted NC-17. So I have to assume that the rated one was even tamer, and thus even crappier.
Sad and predictable in its attempt at comedy, The Ex is a waste of time. You'll be clawing your eyes out at the numbing awfulness.
Tom (Zach Braff) has been fired from his job as a chef at a hoity-toity restaurant, so he and his wife Sofia (Amanda Peet) and their newborn baby schlep from New York to Ohio, where Sofia's dad Bob (Charles Grodin) has not only set Tom up with a new job but also has procured a nice little house for them to raise their new family in. Aww, ain't that sweet. But things don't start off well for Tom at the marketing firm, which turns out to be both new age and, well, wacko. You know, a place where such "creative" aspects as casual dress, unwalled offices, an imaginary ball of ideas or something abound. Tom has some issues with fitting in with the eclectic, quirky crew, but more importantly he clashes immediately with his new supervisor, Chip (Jason Bateman), who just happens to be a former schoolmate of Sofia. Oh, and a paraplegic, of course.
But don't worry; although it seems like this is a romantic comedy about jealousy and redemption, about a young couple getting past their differences to survive as a unit, it's set up to be more like a slapstick comedy, with many jokes at Chip's expense. (Which is okay, because Chip is a real jerk.) The sad reality, though, is that the movie fails at both genres. Women won't like it, because there's no real romance, no genuine feelings on anyone's part. (Sorry to generalize, ladies.) Guys won't like it, because there's not nearly enough physical humor. That would be fine, except there's hardly any subtle humor, either. What you're left with is just vicious, mean-spiritedness that drains every ounce of humor from an otherwise talented cast.
Braff's not terrible, but I never got the sense that he was, well, believable as someone women would desire. But what do I know, I'm a straight male. The affection between him and Peet seemed forced, tentative, and unnatural, sort of like unwilling siblings. Peet wasn't bad, either, but she didn't have much to work with - on a positive note, she doesn't come off as icily unappealing as she does in most of her other films.
And man, check out Charles Grodin. I had to check to see who was playing Sofia's dad - Grodin, who hadn't been in a movie in 13 years, looks about 85 years old here. I thought he was Bob Eubanks. There's one scene, too, in which Bob utters the f-word. For no freaking reason other than to have Charles Grodin, septuagenarian, drop an f-bomb.
Interestingly enough, the unrated version of the movie runs about five minutes shorter than the rated one that was seen in theater. And, having seen the unrated one, I couldn't tell you about any particular scenes that were so raw that they would have pushed the rating to an unwanted NC-17. So I have to assume that the rated one was even tamer, and thus even crappier.
Sad and predictable in its attempt at comedy, The Ex is a waste of time. You'll be clawing your eyes out at the numbing awfulness.