GUY THING, A: DVD

SYNOPSIS: 
When groom-to-be Paul (Jason Lee) wakes up the morning after his bucks party with a girl called Becky (Julia Stiles) in his bed, he is appalled. Especially as he was determined not to do anything he couldn’t tell his fiancée Karen (Selma Blair). Matters get worse when Karen arrives, and one small lie soon turns into a string of lies. There’s a lot at stake because as well as his marriage, his job is also on the line: he works with Karen’s father Ken (James Brolin) in the family firm. His best friend Jim (Shawn Hatosy) does everything he can to support him, but matters get worse when Becky’s ex boyfriend Ray (Lochlyn Munro) – a psychotically jealous crooked cop – appears on the scene.

Review by Louise Keller:
What could have been just another formulaic and predictable romantic comedy is elevated to an entertaining comedy of errors, mostly thanks to the stylish Julia Stiles, whose charisma and presence allows us to forgive many of the overcooked moments. Comedy always works best when played straight and not for laughs. The three main characters are played straight, but so many of the sideline characters are over-done and ham it up, which takes the punch out of the punch, so to speak. There’s Becky’s ex - the manic corrupt over-the-top cop, Paul’s caricature of a loose-tongued mother and step-dad, his soppy love-struck brother, the prudish, nosey minister neighbour and Karen’s hoity-toity mother. 

These are all basically sit-com characters, and we don’t connect with any of them. Some of the would-be funny scenes (like the one in the chemist shop when Paul tries to curb an embarrassing moment when the pharmacy assistant is yelling well-intentioned remedy for crabs, he introduces him to his future mother-in-law as an apprentice chef) just go one step too far, so the gag falls flat. 

That’s not to say a bit of colour doesn’t fare well with characters: I like the over-the-top punk with red dreadlocks and a gold front tooth and Karen’s alcoholic elderly aunt who is intent to get her wine glass filled one way or another. Although there’s not much that’s original, the script plays with a few funny ideas, and there’s a pleasing soundtrack with loads of amenable tunes. 

But it’s Stiles who gives a winning performance and manages to make A Guy Thing feel as though it is a better film than it actually is. Jason Lee has dropped down a peg since his good work in Chasing Amy, but works well as the stressed out guy who has always played it safe, and Selma Blair is the perfect foil as his would-be bride. I rather enjoyed James Brolin’s prospective father-in-law, who balances his performance with gravitas and a wink. The fantasy scenes are fun – these are the moments when we see what might have been – in Paul’s imagination. As for the title – well, it’s about how guys protect other guys because they’re a guy. Sort of like the First Wives Club, except it’s just for guys.

There’s a bunch of ‘A Guy Thing’ features on the DVD, including audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, alternate endings, bloopers, gallery, trailer and an interactive quiz ‘Are We Made for Each Other’.

Published January 8, 2004