Buying the Cow
This generic sex comedy--about a guy who can't decide whether or not to marry his girlfriend because he's still obsessed with a girl he saw in an airport when he was a teenager--really has only one thing to recommend it: Ryan Reynolds (Coming Soon, Van Wilder). Reynolds plays the main character's horndog friend who becomes convinced he's gay, and while much of his material is of dubious taste and quality, Reynolds has a mixture of ironic detachment and actor commitment that makes the most of his role. Everyone else--Jerry O'Connell (as the obsessed guy), Bridgette L. Wilson (as his understandably frustrated girlfriend), Ron Livingston, Bill Bellamy, and Alyssa Milano--have their moments, but the script doesn't offer them much to work with. When it isn't drowning in clichés about men and women, it's trying way too hard to be "over the top." --Bret Fetzer
Love Stinks
In Love Stinks, Seth (French Stewart from TV's 3rd Rock from the Sun), a sitcom writer-producer, meets Chelsea (Bridgette Wilson, Billy Madison) at his best friend's wedding. He's immediately smitten by her blonde babeness; she's attracted to his income and single status. For the next 45 minutes she tries to get him to commit though a combination of skimpy outfits and wild mood swings. When she finally realizes he's not going to, she turns into a vengeful harpy and tries to make his life hell. This might be funny if you believe that women are manipulative, money hungry, marriage-fixated psychotics--but maybe not. The standard of wit is best expressed in the line, "Drop the probe and step away from my ass," declared by Seth as he's about to receive an unrequested colonic in a spa. It's always wise to be wary of comedies with a comedy writer as the main character, especially when the movie is written and directed by a comedy writer. Writer-director Jeff Franklin previously made two TV movies starring the Olsen Twins; this may have been his attempt to exorcise some relationship gone awry. Love Stinks also features Bill Bellamy (Love Jones, Def Jam's How to Be a Player) and supermodel Tyra Banks. --Bret Fetzer
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