The Ex" follows Tom Reilly (Braff) and Sofia Kowalski (Peet) as they move from New York City to a small suburban town in Ohio with their newborn son. Tom, a straight-shooter who can "smell bullshit from a mile away," has just been fired from his job as a resident chef and has conceded to take a position with Sofia's father (Grodin) at a free-spirited advertising firm. Things get awkward when Tom realizes he's working with one of Sofia's high school flings, Chip (Bateman). Chip, arrogant and hard-nosed, has become one of the premier creative-types in the Ohio advertising arena, all without the use of his legs. Having never forgotten his one night with Sofia, he makes attempts at ruining Tom's life, all while wooing Sofia and her parents. Unfortunately for Chip, Tom's keen olfactory senses are starting to kick in. \nThis should sound familiar if you've seen any romantic comedy with a semblance of a love triangle. "The Ex" even fails a bit here as Chip appears too one-dimensional and never comes close to rekindling an affair with Sofia. This is far from Bateman's fault, as he does what he can with the part. Peet does even less with less as her character's subplots fail to develop and thus arouse little interest, while Braff succeeds in playing the same character he's played in everything he's ever done. Charles Grodin proved to be the highlight of the cast, delivering the role of Sofia's father with both humor and humility.\nMost of the laughs were at the movie, and in the pejorative sense, however, the ending did provide some redemption. One scene, one action, one ridiculous image made up for most of the previous 90 minutes of shortcomings. Even so, I don't feel comfortable endorsing this film beyond a Five Buck Club pick. It might be best to wait on Blockbuster to stock this one. You won't have to wait too long.
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Zach Braff defends the movie:
"I don't know that it's breaking new ground but there's certainly nothing like it out right now. I mean, it's a funny - it's really funny. If you like physical comedy, if you like "Scrubs," if you like the "Meet the Parents" kind of movies which I do I think this is a really funny version of one."-Zach Braff
