Yes, Owen reviewed the movie and shared his thoughts about chick flicks in this space just the other day. But indulge me: How many women did it take to coarsen The Ugly Truth, a soul-crushing mainstream romantic comedy in which Katherine Heigl plays an adult who is competent enough to work as a television producer but utterly incompetent at being a single woman who enjoys the success she’s earned?
Well, for starters, the slate of producers includes Heigl and her mother, Nancy Heigl: Mother and daughter were apparently fine with the long, embarrassing scene in which the star, as an uptight, controlling lonely lady named Abby, wears novelty panties equipped with a vibrator operated by remote control. Seated at an important work-related dinner with her bosses when the joystick falls into the hands of an oinky boy at the next table (he doesn’t know what the buttons do, just that they need to be pushed), Abby’s involuntary, jerking sexual spasms become the source of great, smutty hilarity.
Both Heigls obviously signed off on the notion that although Abby keeps a checklist of what she thinks she wants in a classy man, the guy who really knows how to untwist her knickers is a graduate of the guys-just-want-to-get-laid school of cartoon manliness; he teaches her to be a better woman! And the concept obviously passed muster among the three women credited as screenwriters, as well as the women in charge of film editing, production design, casting, costumes, make-up, and set decoration.
The depressing reality is, The Ugly Truth wouldn’t have gotten made without the say-so of the influential woman who heads the major studio that released it.
If this rare critical mass of female talent and power can’t — or won’t — come up with a more intelligent, self-respecting, appealing mass-market romantic comedy that reflects life as reasonable men and women really know it, then I don’t know that even a wise Latina woman like Sonia Sotomayor can help despairing feminists like me.
I think I’ll go watch Humpday again–an indie comedy that’s actually sexy, raunchy, funny, feminist, and wise. True, Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler are nowhere around on screen to draw a crowd. But neither is the feeling that I, as a moviegoer, am being treated like a sucker.
About time actors are held accountable for the slop they willingly go along with and the bad messages they always get to pull a “wasn’t me” on. As a woman, she should be ashamed of herself for being in it in the first place. Unless she’s really that slight, which a lot of the girls in my office who saw it this weekend seem to be. I thought Knocked Up was anti-women too so she’s a repeat offender.
Wow Lisa! Bitter much?
I think it’s interesting that Katherin Heigl felt the need to trash Knocked Up because it was “a little sexist.” and “paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight.” when “The Ugly Truth” is clearly full of sexiest stereotypes.
*sexist
Maybe she should be bitter. I don’t often get offended by movie content, but gender roles (Both female and male) really grate on my nerves. It’s one thing to offend…it’s another to hammer in crass and empty stereotypes into the minds of those who often don’t like to think or challenge themselves much.
I still just can’t believe that this movie was produced by the same actress who referred to Knocked Up as sexist. Glad she’s there to save us from the Judd Apatow’s of the world…
In case I haven’t commented enough…
I need to clarify and state that I don’t fully think “Knocked Up” was sexist per se…just obviously written by a male with unrealistic expectations of them. That her attractive, successful and intelligent character would compromise herself for a directionless oaf just because she had a baby with him is rather insulting. It didn’t try to insult women, it just did it on accident. This movie, however, goes for the jugular.
I hate to say this but now you know how gay people feel whenever there are unrealitic portrayals in the movies.
This remember, is the same woman who decried “Knocked Up” as sexist and her charecter as a “shrew”. Hypocrite much?
Jennifer, I think she’s only bitter because so many rom coms fall into lazy stereotypes about men, women, sex, and life in your 20s… this happens to be a perfect example. The ‘uptight career woman’ needs to ‘find herself’ with the help of a dirtbag who’s really endearing underneath. Very original. Even just the act of watching this movie justifies those assumptions a little bit.
totally with you on everything you said, lisa. i personally boycott the majority of “rom coms” out there, particularly anything that has heigl in it (she’s seriously overrated, IMO, and really annoying, too). thanks for this article!
Get a grip, Lisa. It’s subverting stereotypes by exploiting them for comedic affect.
This is the history of cinema and Heigl is just our newest in a line of talented female box office draws. What’s new and why pick on Heigl, audiences, and female movie execs? Most of us know what we’re getting into when we go to see a rom-com movie like this. We’re not suckers. I think the movie had high Cinemascores, so most were not disappointed. We are your readership at EW so please don’t talk down to us “suckers”. We are intelligent women that can have fun without taking comic stereotypes too seriously.
Well then, the movie failed miserably because the movie isn’t funny. And it’s effect, airhead. Another mindless KH drone I presume.
Well this article just seems like another excuse for the media to punch Katherine Heigl. And to the idiots who keep quoting the Knocked Up comments. Heigl said those things but she also said she hoped women realised that the character were exaggerated and that was what made the humor. She never said she had a problem with it – in fact she said that movie was one of best working experiences. So stop misrepresenting the facts to bash Heigl again and again.
Thank you Tired. It seems the media loved to take one comment that KH makes, and skew it so they can continue to bash her. This recently happened with a comment she made about a long work day, you would think she killed someone.