Director Ron Howard's film about marital infidelity was marketed as a wacky buddy farce, but it's actually a comedy-drama, starring Vince Vaughn as aggressive motor-mouth Ronny and Kevin James as his longtime pal and professional partner Nick, co-owners of an engineering-design company. Just as the pair win a deal with Chrysler to develop an electric engine that will simulate the sound of a muscle car, Ronny stumbles upon Nick's wife Geneva (Winona Ryder) making out with a young stud. Should he tell Nick about Geneva's dalliance when his stressed-out colleague is trying to complete work on the project that will make or break their firm? And will his own intention to propose to girlfriend Beth (Jennifer Connelly) be waylaid by the realization that marriage is such an iffy proposition? The Dilemma vacillates between high drama and slapstick farce, neither of which work (although the strained moments that blend the two approaches are even worse). Not surprisingly, Vaughn sports his usual manic energy, but here comes across as simply desperate, while James makes for a relatively dull foil. As for Howard, the need to juggle the screenplay's disparate elements was a dilemma he simply couldn't solve, and it's the viewer who suffers. Not a necessary purchase. [Note: DVD extras include deleted scenes with an introduction by director Ron Howard (16 min.), a “making-of” featurette (14 min.), an alternate ending (6 min.), a gag reel (5 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a decent extras package for a disappointing film.] (F. Swietek)
The Dilemma
Universal, 112 min., PG-13, DVD: $29.99, Blu-ray: $39.99, May 3 Volume 26, Issue 3
The Dilemma
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