The Ugly Truth

This is another one of those movies where the brains of Hollywood want us to believe someone who looks like Katherine Heigl has trouble getting dates. Trust me, I, and most men, would date her if she was a serial killer (She's only gone for a few hours every night, I can live with that).

Heigl stars as Abby - the producer of a failing morning news program in Sacramento. The only thing failing more than this show's ratings is Abby's love life as she just can't find the right guy, no matter how hard she tries.

One night, she catches a late night cable access program hosted by Mike (Gerard Butler) - a male chauvinist who graphically argues that no one should be seeking love. They should be seeking lust, and practicing manipulation, so he gives no holds barred advice to women to become more desirable to men by, ummm, playing up their feminine wiles.

Of course, she hates him, and he gets hired by the TV station to rescue her morning program. He's so certain that he can turn her love life around and help her capture the heart (and everything else) of her new neighbor that Mike promises to quit if he can't guide Abby to success in the game of love using his techniques.

Will his offbeat methods work?

When they start butting heads, will that lead to them bumping uglies?

Is there any doubt?

The Ugly Truth starts as a somewhat stiff and formal comedy where everyone is kind of reciting their lines and the timing is off just a bit like the actors are on a TV show and waiting for the audience laughter to die down. This is more obvious when not many people in the theater are laughing, but it's not the worst comedy you will ever see.

Granted, director Robert Luketic and the three person writing team do allow The Ugly Truth to get much dirtier than I was ready to see, and, on the day they had to shoot the scene where Heigl has to fake an orgasm in the middle of a crowded restaurant, I have a feeling she called her agent, reported that she was not Sally and has not met Harry, and needs to sign up for another season of Grey's Anatomy. STAT!

More than the vulgarity factor, which you either think is funny or not, I think the writers sometimes come up with a situation that is funny, but they don't have the dialogue to make it work. The fake "ecstasy" scene is a great example of that.

At least the funny stuff keeps you laughing once in a while, but the romantic portion feels forced and becomes quite boring. Mike is interesting when he's obnoxious and angry. As the romantic dude in love, without a great explanation of why he became the obnoxious guy, Mike becomes too familiar and so-so.

Heigl and Butler give it all they have got, but there's not enough here for them to make some movie magic.

The Ugly Truth is rated R for sexual content and language.