It’s the same old story: An uptight professional woman (Heigl, as TV producer Abby Richter) finds love with an earthy male chauvinist (Butler, as ratings-magnet Mike Chadway, whose segment is thrust into Abby's morning mix). The outcome is never in question in these Hollywood romantic comedies; it’s the getting there that makes the movie sparkle or not. Heigl and Butler prove to be no Hepburn and Tracy in this regard. Their characters never genuinely spring to life. Yet the actors are only the most visible aspects of this crassly conceived movie. The film seems calculated to be a “girls night out” picture with an “R” bite that includes plenty of profanity and faked orgasms. Its plotting is utterly predictable. Luketic’s direction is workmanlike at best; the staging underserves the story, the lighting washes out the characters, and the makeup does the actors no favors. Taken as a whole, The Ugly Truth is much like its orgasms: phony and unsatisfying.
Opened 07/24/09
