My Best Friend's Girl (2008) User Reviews (121)

Official "My Best Friends Girl" Review

[z-capton · 6/10 · 8 January 2009]

Was this the best comedy of 2008? Was this the best comedy Dane Cook has starred in? Or even Jason Biggs, Kate Hudson possibly? No. No. No... and no. The likes of "American Pie", "How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days" and "Waiting"... OK I guess I couldn't say "Waiting" being more of a Reynold's flick, but even "Employee Of The Month" truly were far more superior flicks then this movie. Was it awful? No. Predictable? Yes. As most comedies are today, predictable that is... this movie in my opinion falls short of funny.

Does it have funny moments? Sure, of course, why wouldn't it!? But a few laughs isn't enough to be considered a "Great Comedy" just a good one. I would say my favorite part of this movie was Cook's character walking down the alter playing Johnny Cash as he flicks his cigarette to the side. I also liked how they used the 10-count system for all his "Rude" tactics. But I'm sorry, as much as I like Cook's stand-up comedy, even acting, I don't think he or anyone for that matter could have done this movie any justice. It was just another comedy, and really, I'm sick of "Just another comedy." Thank god for "Knocked up, Superbad, Zack And Miri, 40 Yr Old Virgin, and Pineapple Express!" Those, standout, those are the new age of comedy. You want a laugh, watch those, then re-watch those, then watch em again. You'll produce more laughs from those movies in repeat viewings as you would this one.

Sadly, not even the Farrelly brothers can produce quality, not since "There's Something About Mary" and it's really pathetic. I don't know if it has to do with the fact that the companies are lowering the ratings to PG-13 for sales ruining these directors/writers, or just the directos/writers themselves? Bottom line, if you want a good comedy to watch and get a few laughs with your girlfriend, go rent this flick, but, I wouldn't recommend buying it.

-Z.CAPTON

Be no means a classic, but...

[jacob-noergaard · 7/10 · 25 November 2008]

I'm not particularly into Dane Cook. Got nothing against him, either.

Sure, the movie is somewhat clichéd and brings nothing new to the table, but while it might not be an instant classic, it does include some rather hilarious scenes.

My favourite scene must be the scene in "Cheesus Crust". Call me low-level, but that was funny as hell. I laughed like I hadn't laughed in ages. It was great.

Perhaps one of the factors that made me like the movie is the fact, that I can be somewhat of an asshole myself. Yeah, I recognized some of the actions from myself. Not that I'm proud of it.

Yes, many of the jokes aren't gonna make you burst out laughing and the whole romantic scheme is kinda yawn-inspiring, but it kept me entertained and my mug glued to the screen. And that's why I gave it a solid 7.

Raunchy humor

[chad-dougless · 7/10 · 23 September 2008]

Let me state this clearly, if you cannot laugh at raunchy humor, do not go see this movie. However, if you can appreciate the raunchy humor you can truly enjoy this movie. Dane Cook plays an absolutely hilarious jerk throughout the movie, but many may not appreciate the humor he uses.

Yes, this movie is a romantic comedy, but more comedy than romantic. A lot of people seem to dislike Dane Cook and prejudge his movies, but I feel that they let themselves down. If you are offended by vulgarity, just don't go see this movie. If you like Dane Cook or raunchy humor, then you should enjoy watching this movie. I thought it was a pretty good movie and worth seeing once. I don't know that I would own this movie, but I did enjoy the time I spent watching it.

Careless fun.

[Otoboke · 27 November 2008]

The big screen very rarely ever treats its audiences to a romance where the 'asshole' of the story gets more than the simple role of causing friction and delay between the inevitable cathartic moments of bliss between the match-made-in-heaven. So what then does happen when the genre's example of the anti-Christ falls in love? What happens when his or her character actually rises above the clichés that so often dominates their two dimensional motives? The result is inevitably the anti-romcom. My Best Friend's girl is for all intents and purposes not the kind of a-typical romantic comedy affair that we are so often forced upon to see month after month of the year. Instead it presents immediately disagreeable, but in turn, real people to occupy its tale of romance. The result is one that will have audiences undeniably split; there will be those who will simply not be able to get by the ugly sides of this story's characters (particularly the lead male), and those who actually revel in a solid love story that doesn't try to be your charming friend all the way through. Essentially, the dominate colours here are not pastel pinks and blues, but blacks and greys. In real life, romance doesn't usually play out like it does in the movies, but with My Best Friend's Girl there's cause for dispute over this common belief.

When looking through traditional romcom eyeglass, lead character Tank (Dane Cook) isn't the most likable or even compelling leading man. A Rude, callous, chauvinistic and manipulative womaniser, Tank is certainly more fit to be the story's antagonist male than its protagonist. For a living Tank works at a call centre for a company that sells air purifiers, and yet this isn't where the majority of his income comes from (and that's just as well, because he's terrible at that one). As a way to make some money on the side (lots of it) Tank works as a 'nightmare-rebounder'; when a guy gets chucked to the curb his partner, Tank chats her up, treats her to a lousy date and in turn the woman realises how naïve she was presumably being. Of course, this premise has problems; it's contrived and yet clever in a masochistic sort of way. Most enjoyable of all however is that it at least provides as a refreshing change of scenery in this current climate of lacklustre romantic comedies. After wave upon wave of gag-inducing melodrama without any hint of real depth purging themselves upon us this year, it is strangely uplifting to be treated to a story that runs on low standards, morals and characters. Love isn't perfect; in fact it can be down right ugly at times, and while My Best Friend's Girl isn't out to dramatise that theme, it does well at poking fun of it.

Of course all of this simply wouldn't work if Tank himself was a lazy caricature of the worst-man-ever, but he isn't. Dane Cook does a great job here (and I am usually a detractor of his work) of giving Tank an under riding sense of good-heartedness that lies beneath all the callous games that he so eloquently plays with his one night stands. For all intents and purposes we shouldn't like Tank, and although many will not be able to see past that façade, I was definitely won over by Cook's charming and grounded portrayal. What works even more to the movie's ability to win the audiences over however is its ability to crack a chuckle or two. Sure, it goes without saying that much of the humour here is crass and gauche to the point where it may turn people even further away, but director Howard Deutch does a fine job of balancing his two core elements in ways that so many romantic comedies just don't ever get close to. That is not to say that the director gets everything right, because he doesn't. There are numerous problems arising throughout the feature, most notable of which exists between the lacking chemistry between Cook and his co-star Kate Hudson, but given the way in which Deutch presents Jordan Cahan's anti-romantic story, it's not something worth crying about.

To close things off I will say that My Best Friend's Girl certainly isn't hilarious, nor is it tear-jerkingly sentimental; instead it exists as a light-hearted by nevertheless emotive tale of untraditional love blossoming from untraditional circumstances. In this vein the movie distances itself from the immediate residents within the somewhat bloated genre, presenting a refreshing polar opposite view of romance on the big screen in all its imperfections. The movie itself as a whole certainly reflects this central point as it is nowhere near perfection thanks to a superfluous and unnecessarily neat ending, but for the most part Deutch succeeds in delivering something quite unique and satisfying at the same time. What is most refreshing of all however is that the movie very rarely succumbs to holding your hand and trying to get you to like it. So often movies of this nature will pile desperate devices upon tired clichés to get you to feel something and yet Deutch doesn't seem to care. To put it simply then I guess, if you are a sucker for the average romcom where characters are prestine, witty, awkward and immediately lovable, then My Best Friend's Girl probably isn't for you. Instead I recommend this to those who prefer edgier romance and even edgier comedy; this isn't your average fare by any means, no, it's better than that; like its lead character, it's actually good, no-brainer, careless fun.

Better Luck for Dane

[gryffindor249 · 7/10 · 19 September 2008]

Compared to Good Luck Chuck this is a masterpiece. As far as what one will find at the multiplex when looking for a (albiet raunchy) romantic comedy, this is a solid choice, particularly if you like Dane Cook (which I do...go ahead...shoot me). And there are a few lines in the movie that are brilliantly quotable, along with some very nicely shot views of Boston and two countdown montages of Dane destroying dates that are quite funny. Maybe a bit overlong and it probably would have benefited by trimming the inclusion of Alec Baldwin as Dane's dad. But this is the common ground Date Movie for the guy who doesn't want schmaltzy romantic crap and the chick who doesn't mind a few dirty jokes.

A Nutshell Review: My Best Friend's Girl

[DICK STEEL · 7/10 · 21 September 2008]

Back in 2005, Will Smith starred as Hitch, the romance doctor who volunteers his service through close referrals, to help luckless and clueless guys woo the woman of their dreams. His consultancy reaps big rewards, and audiences lapped it all up, with the provision of perhaps some pointers that could be put to good use. Now in My Best Friend's Girl, it takes a twist to this Hitch character, and Dane Cook becomes the Anti-Hitch. The objective is slightly different - you should already be hooked up with your lady love, but when the relationship seems to come to a cool off or a standstill, you engage Tank (Cook) to be the arsehole who will make your loved one appreciate you a lot more, and get back into your arms.

He prides himself with achieving results in 10 steps, and most of the comedy stemmed from his being a total date/dick from hell, and if you're to employ his techniques, then you're likely to earn a reputation for being the biggest arse out there, though sometimes the brashness, directness will also be likely be attractive to those who like to hang out with bad boys. So while Tank does what he does best, his best friend Dustin (Jason Biggs) decided to engage his services, in order to help get Alexis (Kate Hudson) toward him, by providing some push factors, making her realize that nice guys like him don't come too easy. In the spirit of Murphy where things will go wrong, the rule of thumb will ensure that the helper will fall in love with his/her mark.

It sort of reversed some roles here, where the women now subscribe to the philosophy of also sowing their wild oats, before they decide to settle down. For Alexis, she seemed to be missing out on a lot of fun since she rarely goes out on dates, so once convinced, it is at Dustin's expense. Which again puts Jason Biggs into a stereotypical role of a loser who doesn't get any, stemmed from his popularity that went all the way back to American Pie. Kate Hudson continues her role as the ditzy blonde to perfection, and while not exactly a role to showcase her acting chops, she does make a fine on screen couple with Dane Cook, and this show looked tailor made for him.

Dane Cook doesn't get a lot of lead roles, but I feel that all that might change real soon given his revelation here. From flicks like Employee of the Month, Dan in Real Life, to Good Luck Chuck opposite Jessica Alba, he seems on track to become a romantic leading man, even though it's on the romantic comedy track. He continues his ladies man role and extends it to here, and with permission by the filmmakers to adlib and improvise his lines, needless to say he steals the spotlight from everyone here, and has room to stretch his acting chops as well. Watch out for some truly hilarious moments in scenes from his character's workplace, where his career as a customer service teleoperator (also from hell) just cracked me up.

And Alec Baldwin couldn't not be mentioned. Once a leading man of sorts, his career on the big screen gets relegated to support roles, from Elizabethtown to this role here as Tank's dad Professor Turner, who's still an active Casanova made easy when being around young and nubile students, though a character that isn't something not done before, such as Ben Stiller's dad in The Heartbreak Kid.

What worked for My Best Friend's Girl is the tussle between the good guy and the bad guy as they pull no punches in wooing the opposite sex. We don't see much of this tussle personified and go up against each other in the same film very often, and here we perhaps get to examine what probably works, and what doesn't, and that whichever school you subscribe to, it's again not about how much you're giving to try and make someone happy, but whether you're giving the right thing that the other party needs.

Careless?, Yes. Fun? NO!

[cherrycoke3254 · 1/10 · 21 January 2009]

I can handle my fair share of raunchy humor, but to do that, it at least needs to be funny. It's offensive, dull, and lacks any depth between the characters. I couldn't help but wonder why such a charming actress, Kate Hudson, would settle for such crap.

It's suppose to be part of the storyline that the character Tank is an a-hole.But the dialog is so distasteful, and Dane Cook is so natural at being unlikeable, that you can never really recover from it. When it comes to that time in the movie your suppose to root for him.... "Get the girl!", I couldn't shake the cringe left on my face from him telling small children about sexually explicit acts, or him telling some dude to put "it" in his mouth...and that's just the tip of the this Lewd,Crude iceberg.

If you want distasteful AND funny, go rent the 40 Year Old Virgin again and leave " My Best Friends Girl" as just a tune on your ipod.

Hysterical and Raunchy

[marimbadaddy · 7/10 · 22 February 2009]

My Best Friend's Girl is total brain candy, for those who enjoy cheap good 'ole fashion raunchy humor. Though there is nothing truly great about this movie (well, perhaps with the exception of Kate Hudson) it is a fun romp. Cook is extremely funny in this film as he adds his natural stand up like rhythm to the character. Alec Baldwin's performance is also excellent as the slick and sleazy father, who taught Tank how to manipulate women. His character is also way over the top.

My Best Friend's Girl is basically the antithesis of "Hitch": where Tank (Cook), is the man for hire; he takes women out on the worst date of their lives, with the intention to trick them into appreciating and reconnecting with their ex-boyfriend. Tank however meets his match when he's 'working' on Alexis (Hudson) and she is unmoved by his tactics, and he subsequently falls for her. There is excellent tension between the two main characters as well as between Cook's and Biggs' relationship, as Cook tries to hide his feelings from everyone, including himself. The film reaches it's climax in a hysterical montage of Tank utilizing his tactics at a wedding, where he goes way over the top with unacceptable and raunchy behavior.

This is not the movie for you if you hate raunchy bawdy humor, or if you are very religious and can't take a bit of humor against the church. If you can somewhat appreciate or at least tolerate it, once you make it through the first 10 minutes, it is pretty easy to continue. The climax ending is also as raunchy and over the top as the beginning, and may take some tolerance too. But the majority of the film is not completely offensive.

Highly recommended for fans of Superbad, the 40 Year Old Virgin, or the American Pie trilogy.

Sometimes funny, sometimes wrong, sometimes cute, sometimes just plain bad

[Smells_Like_Cheese · 2/10 · 27 September 2008]

After looking on this board to see why most people did not enjoy My Best Friend's Girl, it seemed like the only reason why was due to their lack of respect for Dane Cook, everyone just complained about him or Kate Hudson, but in some sick way I still wanted to see the movie. So I wanted to give it a fair chance and I saw it on Monday, oh, how I regret doing so. There are several problems wrong with this movie: the title is misleading, Jason Biggs really never had Kate Hudson as an official girlfriend in the movie, so why is the title "My Best Friend's Girl"? The song "My Best Friend's Girl" is played almost over and over again in every scene, it gets pretty annoying. Kate Hudson says she wants to get out there and date, but she dates one guy and falls for him. Then Dane Cook is supposed to play this complete and total jerk who just messes around with women's heads and I'm supposed to believe he can just do a 180 on his personality when he finds the right girl? Oh, this story gave me a headache.

Dustin is crazy about a girl he has been dating, Alexis, so much that he moves quickly to say that he loves her and that they should move faster. Alexis freaks out and dumps Dusty, leading him to ask his friend, Tank, for a favor, Tank gets paid by other men to take their ex's out and to be a complete and total disgusting jerk making them realize that the guy they had before was an angel and should be given a second chance. Tank does this for Dusty, one problem, Tank actually really likes Alexis, the plan backfires when Alexis tells Dusty she would like to continue to see other people. Dusty thinks Tank is still trying to help him while secretly he continues dating Alexis and finding out that he even falls for her just as hard as Dusty does.

This movie is hypocritical, sick, and honestly doesn't have any redeemable qualities. I'm supposed to feel bad for Dane Cook's character after he realizes that Alexis is special and because he does one cute thing for her, all that he's put other women through, all he just did to his best friend, all he is putting Alexis through, I'm supposed to like him at the end? Not to mention Alexis sees him finally moving on after she dumps him, he's with another woman and rudely breaks up their date making a fool out of herself. Dusty moves onto a slutty girl and... God, this movie just made me so angry. It has 2 funny giggles, that's about it, I wouldn't really recommend it though. I love movies, if they're aimed for a certain purpose, I cut it a lot of slack, but this movie was just very messy when it came to the story and it just got predictable and stupid.

2/10

Cooking raunchy chatter comedy here!

[meeza · 7/10 · 21 September 2008]

(In the style of The Cars hit song "My Best Friend's Girl")

These romantic comedies are always playing down the street With their formulaic chic film style And every new date boy that gets to see Is not in store for a real surprise

(here he comes again) Dane Cook plays Tank with his unruly style Oh, he'll make you flip (here he comes again) When he is cursing to his dates neath the starry sky I kind of like the way he bleeps He stars in "My Best Friend's Girl" He rocks in "My Best Friend's Girl" His Tank is not kind

Kate Hudson got her mother's acting roots But sometimes it drips way above When she tries to be too hip In some reaction to love, o-ove, o-ove (here she comes again) When she is starring in movies it makes me cry Yeah, I think I will movie flip (here she comes again) Playing another chic-flick chic who dumps a guy Cause she also stars in "My Best Friend's Girl" She does suck in "My Best Friend's Girl" She used to be so fine She was so fine

OK, I will stop "The Cars" and put on the brakes. The aforementioned musical analogy provided my in-pun input on the protagonists of the film "My Best Friend's Girl". But just in case you did not comprehend the musical jingle film review lingo, let me present it to you in more standard pun terms: Dane Cook was hilarious as Tank, a jabbering Bostonian who gets paid by male dumpees to date their female dumpers in order to reconcile with them. Tank's side-splitting female humiliation ploys is the only aspect that stopped me from not completely dumping "My Best Friend's Girl". Kate Hudson was horrendously superficial as Alexis, our leading female protagonist who herself has dumped Tank's best friend Dustin (played by Jason Biggs); let's just say that Dustin is a very Offman in the courtship department. Dustin eventually hires Tank to shoot his dating fires on Alexis, and out of nowhere (smell of sarcasm arises) Tank falls for his best friend's girl. Director Howard Deutch probably got the inspiration on helming "My Best Friend's Girl" from his younger dating days when he would ask his female dates to go "dutch". Punning kidding aside, his effort was credible but ran into too many emblematic romantic comedy traps. I do give a nod to Screenwriter Jordan Cahan for having the "cahanes" to scribe up a witty raunchy dialogue for Tank. However, the rest of his written narrative of "My Best Friend's Girl" had "Help me Howard" written all over it. I would not be a good friend to you if I would tell you see "My Best Friend's Girl" as soon as possible. My best advice to you is to wait for its Netflix delivery! *** Average

Dane Cook fails again as terrible writers give him a terrible script, resulting in terrible material for 90+ terrible minutes

[diac228 · 3/10 · 22 September 2008]

Dane Cook tries his comedy chops yet again by headlining this romantic comedy after the disaster known as Good Luck Chuck. Suffering the fate of many comedians like Norm MacDonald, Dave Chappelle, Richard Pryor, John Leguizamo and more, he just doesn't have success in translating his success on the microphone to the big screen in a leading role. Usually comedians fare better as supporting/cameo roles; with George Carlin, Sarah Silverman, Leguizamo, Chappelle as examples. Even with his overrated comedy, one has to admit Cook is at his prime whenever he busts out the cruel factor. Dane Cook has the look of a man that can verbally tear you apart and watch you moan for emotional mercy.

This time, in My Best Friend's Girl, we can see the cruel side of Cook, a side we hadn't seen yet. Unfortunately, this movie fails again because Cook yet again tries the actual acting chops instead of pertaining to his humor. My Best Friend's Girl could have been a raunchy, edgy comedy that takes no prisoners. Instead, it treads on vulgar, then at the same time attempts to add heart. It's almost impossible to mix raunch with heart—There's Something About Mary, Dumb and Dumber and the 40-Year-Old Virgin are extremely rare examples. My Best Friend's Girl is not a rarity; it's the average run-of-the-mill mediocre romance flick that doesn't entertain often.

In this movie, we follow Tank (Dane Cook) as he tries to help out his friend (Jason Biggs) by delivering a bad time to his friend's ex (Kate Hudson)—only to wind up falling for her. Things get complicated when Tank starts developing a heart and begins to question the morals of his high-paying side job. The story isn't original, but with original material, could have come off as a smart romantic comedy. Unfortunately, we receive moment after moment of expected crudeness with unexplainable, unimportant, unoriginal, and unfunny material. They say a lot of improvisation was in this movie, but besides Dane Cook's few quirky one-liners, there's not much hilarity there. The writing cast failed to bring anything to the table, and expected the frontman comedian to carry the load of garbage to quality.

The main selling point for me was Kate Hudson and Jason Biggs, two underrated pawns in the cruel world of Hollywood. Yet again, they are underused as most of the focus is on Dane Cook. Kate Hudson has very few moments to herself that doesn't involve the lead, which is a shame because if we give her room, she can deliver. Jason Biggs has almost no material to work with, as his character is about as predictable and pathetic as can be. It was so bad that Biggs representing kindness and the typical "nice guy" winds up looking like the unlikable buffoon in all this. Dane Cook is at his best when cruel comedy is attached—any other moment he fails like a blind tennis player competing against Pete Sampras. His antics while working were used up in the previews, and he didn't have many moments in the sinister spotlight. While this isn't as low or shady as Good Luck Chuck, he still has a long ways to go.

There's so much more wrong with this movie. Whether it's the repetitive shots of Boston, awful musical selections (with the exception of Johnny Cash), too many slow moments, terrible usage of a potentially good cameo, and refusal to end, My Best Friend's Girl has too much going against it to ever be deemed a mediocre movie. Within the muddle of patheticness lies potential for some social commentary concerning dating, relationships, nice guys, and jerks; but none of this is ever explored because we needed more footage of Dane Cook messing with naked women. Also, the workplace scenes of Cook working for an air conditioner company could have resulted in Office Space-like quality humor, but is also underused and quickly forgotten.

Bottom Line: This movie is a mess, when it could have been something grand, something different, and finally something that Dane Cook can successfully sink his teeth into. Unfortunately, none of this happens and we have Cook leading the way towards a brick wall of fail along with Kate Hudson, Jason Biggs, and even the master Alec Baldwin. Many good ideas are quickly tossed around like a messy tossed salad, and only the bad parts remained in the bowl. Highly recommend to skip; as this may even disappoint the biggest of Dane Cook fans—since unlike his humor on the mic, relies on only one brand: vulgarity. He needs a better supporting writing staff, or figure out how to be in a film with people that can master improvisation and directing it; most notably the Judd Apatow group. Someone stop Cook, he's just embarrassing himself.

Not for everyone .... but definitely entertaining to some!

[NicholasTuttle · 8/10 · 25 September 2008]

Maybe because I wasn't expecting Oscar material... maybe because I enjoy Dane Cook... maybe because Alec Baldwin can be funny in just about anything... I just really had a good time at this movie. I understand why it doesn't have huge box office appeal, but it certainly has appeal for a specific type of audience. Crude humor? Cheezy plot line? Bring it on! I'm sorry that more people can't enjoy 115 minutes of silly escapism.

Sure, most of it was predictable. Sure, Dane Cook was basically being Dane Cook. But if you let yourself catch all the RIDICULOUS lines (especially the dialog between Alec Baldwin and Dane Cook), and if you let yourself enjoy how cute Kate Hudson is ... you MIGHT just enjoy this movie a little.

pretty funny

[andychochong · 7/10 · 23 September 2008]

i thought this movie was pretty funny. i liked how he used the music in his car to get the girls to dislike him more pretty funny. some bad thing i thought were the stunts. like when he got thrown of the hotel he didn't even get thrown out he got pushed out but it look like he was gonna get thrown out. kinda cheap him doing his own stunts. i wasn't really looking forward to watch this movie but me n friends were just bored on a Friday night and ended up at the AMC theaters. i will refer people to watch the movie though. i wouldn't mind watching it again sine i watched it like half asleep. WOW i need 10 lines to finish this so im going to write this last part.

Save your money and spend the hour and a half doing something else.

[chewy26 · 2/10 · 22 February 2009]

First off this movie is another guy comedy. Gah. Its just too much! They take everything to the extreme. The best friend is SUCH a jerk so of course HIS best friend must be the big loser who is just so extremely nice. And his niceness is just so creepy. And beneath the "BAD GUY/JERK" image is a caring and sensitive guy. Whatever. Worse line, albeit funny a woman talking to another woman in the bathroom tells her to not listen to the words of others or her own heart, but to listen to the lips of the "clam shell". And begins to mimic her 'nether lips' talking with her hands. and says " LISTEN TO ME." WHO DOES THAT? This movie is trash. Not even Alec Baldwin's cameo could save this film. I am so sick of Dane Cook. He is ugly and full of pock marks and not the least bit a 'ladies man' to pull this movie off. Crude. Slow. Predictable.F.

Give Me My Hour and a Half Back! Awful Even Compared to Other Dane Cook Movies!

[leighrousson2 · 21 September 2008]

This movie somehow pulls off being both incredibly vulgar yet completely boring and uninteresting at the same time. Basically it's obvious they decided that this trend of vulgar "romantic" comedies (i.e. American Pie) are bound to cash in so they'll just come up with a bunch of vulgar stuff, throw them together in a mixed bag of rail-thin "plot", add in a big name star (Kate Hudson, totally wasted in this) then spew out the result on movie screens and start counting money. Well this movie is going to flop big time, mark my words. When a movie is this bad it will not do well. Word of mouth is more important than I think studios realize, and this movie will not get much of that, if any at all. Advance reviews are atrocious and they should be. This abortion of a movie is one of the biggest wastes of an hour and a half I've ever experienced. Special mention to Dane Cook's completely hammy and painfully unfunny performance. He's trying so hard that it's sad, not delivering even one laugh, and the preview screening I saw was PACKED. It was noticeably silent throughout save for a few embarrassed giggles/immature teenagers laughing loudly at some of the pointless vulgar parts. Isn't Dane Cook's fifteen minutes up yet? He is one of the least funny "comedians" I've ever seen in a movie. Employee of the month was also a travesty.

funny, better than other dane movies

[hopeliesbleeding · 7/10 · 20 September 2008]

While I'm a big fan of Dane's standup among other things he's done such as voices on the crank yankers and the more serious roles(Mr.Brooks and spiral) I wasn't too thrilled with good luck chuck or worse yet employee of the month. I'll admit as much as I was looking forward to this movie for months I was at the same time hesitant. Glad I saw it because this movie got some good laughs out of me,worth seeing. Don't let those other movies stop you from seeing this one.I never saw any of movie Kate Hudson was in but I liked her in this film, wasn't expecting much hilarity from her but she was funny. My only gripe is the unnecessary nudity, but it's hard to come by a movie without that now a days.

Full review available at http://www.sorryimlate.com/reviews/mybestfriendsgirl.html

[mix_daddy · 6/10 · 3 November 2009]

Tank Turner (Dane Cook, Good Luck Chuck) is a call centre worker with a side business: dumped boyfriends pay him to take out their slighted ex-girlfriends, and in that date be such an asshole to the degree that they come running back to the boyfriend who looks angelic in comparison.

Things get complicated when he is hired by his roommate and best friend (the one from the title, you see where this is going yet?) Dustin, played by Jason Biggs (American Pie 2), to take out his co-worker and "friend" Alexis (Kate Hudson, Almost Famous). Things go pear-shaped when Tank actually falls for Alexis, putting her between the two best friends. Tank is torn between loyalty and love, while Dustin desperately tries to keep himself as an integral part of Alexis' life.

Needless to say that the storyline for this movie is nothing special, but when it comes to comedies the story isn't important, what's important is that I'm entertained. And was I? This movie is pretty much a vehicle to get a large part of Dane Cook's stand-up routine onto film and looking at it from that perspective I would consider it great success. Now, don' be fooled by the trailers and the posters and the Kate Hudson, this isn't your standard Hollywood feel-good chick flick barf fest. It's vulgar, really, really vulgar and at times very mean spirited. Awesome for me, but if you're the type of person that complains about sh*t like McDonald's commercials during kids TV or trying to get movies censored, then you should really not go anywhere near this. Actually, you shouldn't go near anything because you're just gonna COMPLAIN about it, aren't you? What are you ever doing reading this? Let's move on.

Cook shines when he turns up the arrogance, turns up the vulgarity and let's loose. It's easy to see that the man was given a lot of free reign when it came to improvising his lines and it shows. There are stages in the movie in which the guy has to actually act a bit in which he struggles, but rest assured that soon enough Cook will be off again cussing and doing what brought him to the dance. He pretty much saves this movie from receiving the Sorry I'm Late.com Kate Hudson Award (an award no film aspires to achieve).

Now Cook is a man with very vocal critics, a group of which I am not a part of. I find the dude hilarious when he just goes nuts and cuts loose, but that also seems to be what the haters call him on. So here's the tip: Like Cook = watch this. No like Cook = no watch this. Simple, right? The other standout is Alec Baldwin who seems to be relishing his recent career stint as comic foil as opposed to world's greatest actor. Going out on a limb, but I'd say the man spent a bit of time studying Dane Cook on stage because in this movie, he plays Tank's father Professor Turner, the man who taught Tank everything he knows about womanising. Baldwin chews up desks, chairs and any other scenery he can get his hands on in this outrageous and OTT portrayal, which ultimately is a fun but forgettable chapter in his career.

Everything else is honestly a bit meh. Biggs is serviceable, Caplan is underused but why, oh why did this movie have to have Kate Hudson in it? The one-trick-pony Hudson and her popcorn fart romantic comedy sensibilities have no place here. The entire thing basically comes to a standstill in the second act when Tank is trying to be the good guy around her, a part of the movie in which we are supposed to sense their connection. But there is no connection as we know who Tank is (an extension of Cook the person), and Hudson just doesn't work. She tries the dirty stuff but it just seems forced. This thing really needed someone who could stand their own on screen against Cook. Bad casting. Bad.

Sadly, because it's a guy's movie disguised as a girl's movie a feel that this one is going to be lost in the shuffle of movies that aren't sure of what they're supposed to be, or better put, movies that are marketed to be something than what they indeed are.

Not the best thing going around, but has its moments of brilliance, mostly when Cook and Baldwin's leashes are loosened and they go all out. A few patches of blandness, mainly on the part of Hudson, shouldn't stop you from at least giving this one a crack.

Is this the most obnoxious film in the history of cinema?

[UKscreenwriter · 1/10 · 21 November 2008]

And I like gross-out comedy. After a slick title sequence which felt like it had been added later some dreadful music set the alarm bells ringing. And then the lead character "Tank" (and he really tanks) - he's not going to be like this all the way through the film is he??? Oh yes he is. And what was with the product placement for Malboro cigarettes - with the "smoking kills" emblem on the packet carefully obscured? Is the idea that we watch this dreadful film, get hooked on smoking, and then kill ourselves? And what about the poor actress who has to risk her life smoking these things just to sell them? Or were those fake cigarettes? That would be a brilliant irony. In this film people smoke in bars, at the breakfast table and even in church. Uh, right. So let's get smoking. Kate Hudson is about 10years too old for her part, and Tank is about 15. Worst scene - sleazy father and son together in a bar "eyeing up" the chicks. Best scene - Kate Hudson playing a reverse on Tank and inviting him up to her pad for sex after he's been a jerk; a scene Kate performed with genuine freshness and dare I say it - some truth. Good for her. Sadly no one else did. The premise simply doesn't stand up. Any woman treated the way these women were by Tank would be put off men for a year - not go running back into the arms of their last dud boyfriend. To be bad you have to be super-bad but this film just reeks of woman-hating.

At Times, An Off-Putting Movie

[tabuno · 7/10 · 17 January 2020]

Kate Hudson stars in this romantic comedy that is at times hard to watch as Dane Cook's character descends into a raunchy and rather off-putting performance. Even though Dane's character is actually supposed to play at being the worst date to the point that it makes any girl want to run back to their former boyfriend, the script goes overboard to the point that it makes some audience members watching the movie want to run back to the traditionally safe romantic comedies. Thus there are scenes that are tough to watch. Overall, this is a funny, at times raunchy movie that could have been better if Dane's character had been more carefully developed and the finer nuances of transforming this movie into a more watchable film. Kate does well in her role. An uneven but makes it over the finish line in rough fashion.

Total romcom treason! Has some intelligence and humor but, for the most part, this is a sleazy, dirty, offensive romantic comedy

[inkblot11 · 3/10 · 22 September 2008]

Tank (Dane Cook) has a job as a "complaint-handler" for a company that sells air purifiers. What this means, basically, is that he tells folks in 1,001 ways that they are not getting their hard-earned money returned to them, even if their devices don't work. In addition to this sleazebag job, he has an unsavory moonlighting position, too. He will, for a fee, take a man's ex-girlfriend out on a miserable date or two, so that the female will come running back to her former flame. She will do this because her old mate will look "good" to her and because she will be scared of the quality of single, available men out in the big world. It works stingingly well. But, one day, Tank is asked to date the gal his roommate, Dustin (Jason Biggs) had fallen in love with and been dumped by. Tank is hesitant since Dustin is a personal friend but eventually he agrees to meet Alexis (Kate Hudson). But, lo and behold, Alexis is different from a lot of other females. Not only is she gorgeous and smart, she doesn't seem to mind it when Tank plays his car stereo at full volume or takes her to a strip club for their first date. This may take more than one encounter, thus providing time for Tank to begin to admire his prey. Is there a possible love triangle in the future? This film has some genuine intelligence and humor, but no one will notice. It is, quite frankly, a sleazy, dirty, offensive film that will send most fans of romantic comedy running to the box office for a refund. There is an abundance of bad language, gross humor, and sexual scenarios that make the film a strong "R", putting it a category of non-recommendation for the average film goer. That said, the cast is an asset, with Cook doing a fine down-and-dirty turn as the amoral opportunist, and Hudson, Biggs, and Alec Baldwin providing nice support as the other major players. The production values are also above average, with nice costumes, metropolitan sets, camera work and direction. But, the script is replete with uber-raunchy thoughts and ideas that register disgust, not admiration. If you are a huge fan of light romance, do NOT see this movie, you will be absolutely horrified. Unless you are "up for anything", this is a flick you would not wish on your best friend's girl, mother, dog, et cetera.

a pleasant surprise,but more of the same..

[sumlittlepunk · 7/10 · 23 September 2008]

Awful Poster, unwatchable trailer... It's like they were hoping i wouldn't want to see it. but Dane Cook made some statement saying it was good, so i figured i'd overlook the fact Jason Biggs was in it, and give it a chance.

what a treat! Alec Baldwin was genuinely hilarious in this.. it's the the comedy version of his appearance in glengarry glen ross. short,sweet and funny to no end..i was laughing so hard i made embarrassing noises unintentionally.

it's one of those movies that friends will be reminding me about,and recommending in 8 months when they finally get around to watching it on DVD..

Don't waste your time

[danail_1131 · 1/10 · 1 January 2011]

Please, somebody tell to miss Hudson read screenplay, before acting in movies. Please, somebody tell to Mr. Cook - go back to bar, and never again try to by a movie actor. Please, somebody tell to Jason Biggs - back to last job, before you start your carrier. Please, Mr. Doitch - stop directing a movies, you are not for this job. Please, somebody tell a screenwriter - before you write something new - read a some books, or better - never again write. Hollywood lose your sense fora a good rom-com. If you, folks, need a good rom-com white black satiric humor, please search a from something different place - maybe a British movies, or from another European country. Escuse my bad English - just this not my birth language.

Definite guilty pleasure for me, headlined by Jesus Crust - where pizza is a religious experience!

[herb_at_qedi · 8/10 · 1 November 2008]

I went to this only because I couldn't get into the movie I came to the theater for. I don't know Dane Cook's stand-up and hated him in the overrated Dan In Real Life. But, we figured we could pass time for two hours so we went in.

It started routinely enough. Okay, the guy gets paid to be the date from heck so the girls goes crying back into her guy's arms. Okay concept, if executed well. Then we get Jason Biggs trying to clean up his act to impress Kate Hudson who likes him but is not wowed by him. Since Jason is Dane's roommate, he hires Dane to do his specialty. By this point, we're 20+ minutes into the movie and it made me laugh twice and is otherwise pretty lame. I looked at my watch. Then, Kate's roommate preps her for the date to sow some wild oats and the real fun begins.

The humor in My Best Friend's Girl is rude, crude, inappropriate, socially irredeemable -- and made me laugh out loud - a lot! Cook's chemistry with Hudson was electric. The twist is she can give as good as she gets and vice versa. She gets under his skin, but he stays in denial, leading to his next assignment which to me was the high point of the movie. The girl is religious and he takes her to a restaurant in an old church called Jesus Crust - where pizza is a religious experience. i don't want to spoil the inspired gags in this sequence, but I was nearly rolling in the aisles. This victim actually winds up setting the stage for a few plot twists I didn't expect. The movie is raucous fun from then on until the end.

I thought Alec Baldwin was absurdly funny as the Women's Studies professor who is Cook's father. His chemistry with Cook is also terrific. Cook's former client who is about to marry Kate's sister is also hilarious as is she and the woman playing Kate's mother. Then, the movie goes a bit soft,conventional, and derivative -- but is still witty at the end, and the last two scenes play out nicely.

This is not a piece of art, but if you ever went to frat parties and can remember having fun at them and want to spend some time laughing out loud, give My Best Friend's Girl a look. I work in Manhattan so I have to be careful to whom I say I liked this movie -- that's why I call it a guilty pleasure!

Not very good, actually

[neil-476 · 6/10 · 26 November 2008]

Romcoms ain't what they used to be. Oh, sure, the formula has remained constant - odd circumstances force together a couple of, on the surface are unsuited to each other, and amusing friction ensues. The audience, however, can see that they are made for each other, and events gradually cause them to realise this themselves - cue happy ending. But the difference these days is that romcoms often come with a diligent application of crudeness and coarseness as opposed to the frothy confections they used to be.

My Best Friend's Girl is a case in point. Tank has an unusual occupation - young men who have been dumped by their girlfriends pay tank to take the girls on a Date From Hell, following which they come screaming back, having realised the value of what they had earlier rejected. Tank's best friend and flatmate Dustin has fallen for Alexis, who dumps him on the grounds that he's moving to fast for her, and they both need to play the field a bit more. Dustin gets Tank to do his worst, but Alexis doesn't so much see through him as find herself enormously attracted to him despite his uncouth facade. A steamy relationship ensues in the course of which Tank begins to fall for Alexis. Various developments involving Dustin, Tank's father, and Hilary (a prim Christian who Tank "charms" by taking her to specialist pizza joint Cheeses Crust, which serves crucifix shaped pizzas) convince Tank that Alexis deserves someone better than him, so he provokes her into dumping him by some spectacular misbehaviour at her sister's wedding. But, of course, he realises that this was a mistake on his part, and a happy ending eventually ensues.

Tank's Date From Hell routines are, of course, the source for much of the film's crudeness but, as is usual with a certain type of film, a wholly unnecessary amount of bad language runs right the way through.

I'm easily pleased with films. This one made me laugh a fair amount - always helpful in a comedy, I find - and I walked out of the cinema satisfied, but it really isn't a very good film - almost everything is wrong with it. The plot doesn't bear any sort of sensible examination, the motivations don't work, people don't react in any way realistically (there is no way Alexis would take Tank back following his behaviour at the wedding, for instance), Tank's character is inconsistent (the film wants to have its cake and eat it, but if Tank was fundamentally decent then he simply wouldn't be able to behave as he does), and the ending is bolted in so blatantly that the nuts haven't been tightened. And Dane Cook (as Tank, not an actor I had encountered before) doesn't have an ounce of endearingness in his body.

But there are two big strengths. Alec Baldwin puts in a terrific turn as Tank's selfish, shallow Jack-the-lad father, and Kate Hudson lights up the screen every second she's on it. Looking and sounding more like her mother than ever (and, without giving too much away, 16-year old me fell big time for Goldie Hawn in Laugh-in back in 1968), she has a luminescent smile, and an ability to make even the most improbably dialogue or action believable.

I have to be honest and say that, to my enormous surprise, I choked up when the happy ending arrived. I think this is more a comment on me than on the movie, though.

So I enjoyed this movie despite it not being very good. But then, I could sit and look at a photograph of Miss Hudson and be fairly pleased!

A comedy that isn't funny

[crazy-ben66 · 3/10 · 17 February 2010]

My review may contain spoilers, however the final paragraph does not.

To begin, 'My Best Friend's Girl' is a very lame attempt at a slapstick rom-com. With Dane Cook in the driver's seat, the movie looks as if it's trying to imitate 'Employee of the Month' or one of his other, generally quite funny movies. However, with Jason Biggs supporting, and a few scenes of accidental comedy, this movie also feels like it's trying to hop on the same train as American Pie. Then when you throw in Kate Hudson, everything goes horribly horribly wrong.

The premise of the story is a good one; a down on his luck nice guy, Dustin, is dumped by his pretty girlfriend, Alexis, and so, asks his womanising best friend, Tank, to do what he does best and take her on the worst date of her life, so she'll go back to him out of disgust. This comedic tale takes a turn for the worse however, when the womanising best friend falls in love with the pretty (now ex) girlfriend, and things get very complicated.

It's at this point that Jason Biggs (Dustin) disappears for a long long time, returning only for the vomit inducing finale. Which was probably a good move, considering the likeness to his character in American Pie, makes Dustin seem like a naive teen and the story really doesn't work as Kate Hudson plays Alexis as a 30 something year old working woman looking for a few flings. Enter Dane Cook, with possibly the worst performance of the lot, but still, probably the most honest. He plays Tank the same way he played the lead in the other 2 of his movies, the experienced playboy who falls hopelessly in love, and by now, that act is wearing a little thin. He is the one who gets the most laughs mind... make that the only laughs.

As the film progresses on and Tank and Alexis become an item, with Dustin gone and no back story as to where he is; Alexis' sister's wedding approaches, where Tank finally decides that he's done wrong by his best friend and plans to ruin the wedding in spectacular style. Cue ridiculous and offencive jokes that are not only un-humorous but seriously crude and uncalled for, as well as ridiculous and slapstick happenings that are too far from reality. And all this just to give his best friend back his girlfriend, who in the end, re-surfaces, only to say he doesn't want his girlfriend back after-all. What a stupid ending. But wait, there's more...

3 months later, Tank is on a date with another woman in the same restaurant where Alexis and her roommate when Alexis suddenly decides "Hey, he may be an ass, but he's sweet," leading to a silly argument between the two in the middle of a crowded restaurant, ending with them attempting to swallow each other's faces. Leaving a cheesy ending as the cherry on top of the rom-com cake that lacks the yeast of comedy, meaning it's a goopy, un-entertaining mess.

There are a few exceptions to the awfulness of this movie however. Alec Baldwin is excellent as Tank's father, capturing the ageing bachelor perfectly. Also, the underrated Lizzy Caplan is great as Alexis' roommate Amy, playing the too-old party girl very well indeed. But these minor exceptions are outgrown by the terrible script, average direction and unlovable characters.

To conclude, if you are looking for a decent rom-com to watch with the girlfriend/boyfriend/wife/husband stay away from this movie. If you are looking for a bit of fun on a lazy afternoon (like I was), stay away from this movie. And even if you are a brain dead cretin who will laugh at anything, STAY AWAY FROM THIS MOVIE. And before you ask... yes, it really is THAT bad.