Reviewed by Cassam Looch
Stars Uma Thurman, Colin Firth, Jeffrey Dean Morgan,
Sam Shepard, Lindsay Sloane, Justina Machado,
Keir Dullea, Kristina Klebe
Written by Mimi Hare, Clare Naylor & Bonnie Sikowitz
Certification UK 12A | US PG-13
Runtime 90 minutes
Directed by Griffin Dunne
Oh dear, what went wrong here? As turgid as romantic comedies can be as a genre this is a real low point, wasting a great cast and decent central concept to churn out a turkey of massive proportions. Normally when a film is this bad you kind of expect it, either the trailer gives it away or a low rent cast will be attached… But this one comes out of the blue… and leaves a really bad taste.
Radio host and ‘love doctor’ Emma Lloyd happily gives out advice on her talk show on all matters to do with relationships. Rarely dealing with the consequences she is about to get married herself to Richard (Colin Firth), the publisher of her new book. One evening she takes a call from a woman about to get married to fireman Patrick (Jeffry Dean Morgan), who is having second thoughts. Much to Patrick’s embarrassment he is dumped on air and left heartbroken. He then hatches a plan for revenge and, using a local technical whiz kid, manages to ‘fix’ Emma’s personal details to show that they are legally married. When Emma finds out she assumes it was a computer glitch and tries to persuade Patrick to sign the documents to prove it was an accident, with him initially keen to get his own back… but slowly he starts having feelings for her.
And yes that last sentence says it all, it’s that predictable. Recently, Definitely Maybe entered the rom-com market and proved to be a worthy addition, mixing up the format and at least adding something original if not being completely successful. The Accidental Husband tries to go for quirky and moving, but never manages either. Thurman can carry off most roles but her attempts at humour fall flat throughout, and you need look no further than the scene when her character is supposed to be drunk to see that she is not naturally suited to the material. Colin Firth plays the affable if slightly straight-laced fiancé who, as always in these sorts of films, does nothing and still ends up getting dumped. I don’t really know who the other guy is, apparently he’s something big in the States, but the film could really have done with a higher-profile leading man.
Also, what on Earth is going on with the stereotypical Indian family used as comic foil to Patrick’s homelife? Ajay Naidu, who plays the ‘best friend’ role, is awful, unable to raise even one laugh. It’s difficult to tell whether he is meant to be deliberately unfunny or is just a terrible performer, but I could well do without ever seeing him on the big screen again. Easily the worst film I’ve seen so far this year, and I’d be particularly unlucky to see anything worse.