Last Friday Mike Boylan and I were discussing what movies we were going to see for this week’s reviews during our new entertainment podcast, “The Citizen Popcast.” We came to the conclusion that there was really only one new movie coming out that was worth seeing, “The Heartbreak Kid.” So it looked like it was time for another head to head review. The last time Mike and I did this, we both saw “A History of Violence.” That film quickly found its way into my list of least favorite films of all time, while, for Mike, it climbed its way to one of his top films of the year.

Naturally we were both curious to see how the new Farrelly brothers film starring Ben Stiller would sit with the other and if we would end up with another heated debate over the film’s merits or lack thereof. On Friday Mike predicted I would hate the film and that he would love it. So was he right? To find out what Mike thought of the film, you can read his review above.

As for me, I won’t use a whole lot of space on the plot points, but I will say that I didn’t hate it. Not at all in fact.

The premise is decent enough: Stiller’s character, Eddie, caves under pressure to get hitched and ends up with a mess of a marriage before the ink has even dried on the marriage license. While on their honeymoon, Eddie and his new bride, Lila (Malin Akerman), start to see each other in a whole new light, one that’s not so flattering.

After Lila scorches her entire body in the intense Caribbean sun, Eddie finds himself with some extra time on his hands and begins falling for another woman, Miranda (Michelle Monaghan).

At this point, one would hope that the male lead would do the right thing, after some bumbling mistakes and the expected miscommunications, of course. Instead the film veers onto a strange and somewhat disconnected path from the first half of the movie. Eddie turns out to be a selfish clod, and, despite Lila’s own shortcomings, you begin to feel bad for her.

The first half of the film I found quite funny, and I thought it lived up to the reputations the Farrellys and Stiller have earned for solid comedies. By the second half of the film, while there were still some things to chuckle about, I found myself checking the time to see how much longer we had to go. The film sits at just under two hours, and I think that was just too long for this type of movie.

All in all, audiences who like Stiller and the Farrellys will like “The Heartbreak Kid.” Another run through the editing room and tad more likability for Stiller’s character and the film would have been just right.

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