"You see, the key to this game is being able to read people."
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is a twisted take on the classic deception plot. To put a complex issue simply, advice columnist Andie Anderson is tasked to write a piece on, you guessed it, how to lose a guy in 10 days. To do so, she ensnares hot shot advertising executive Ben Berry into a relationship and proceeds to purposefully sabotage said relationship in the most ridiculous ways imaginable. Meanwhile, Ben has been challenged by his coworkers to get a woman to fall in love with him in 10 days, thus creating quite the conundrum, as Andie's attempts to drive him away somehow convince him to stay.
This film was so fun, I loved it. There, I said it.
I was skeptical at first, I'll admit it. I have seen this plot line done again and again and I never like the part where the other person finds out they were a part of a bet. The reason this film snared my heart was because there was a bet on both sides of the relationship, and they conflicted with each other so horribly it was impossible to stop watching.
First of all, let's address the cliches that made me think I was going to hate this movie. The way Andie expected a women's magazine to let her write about politics just made me mad at that point. Magazines like that are built to reduce women down to consumers and nothing less, so obviously there won't be political stories in there. It just seemed far fetched and tired, I knew she was gonna quit in the end. Then there's the fact that Ben drives a motorcycle. Like, of course he does
Ok I'm done now. Moving on.
This film probably ranked highest out of any of the others on the cringe scale. Andie's reckless antics made me absolutely restless. I was so on edge watching her offer matching clothes to Ben and cry over meat when she's not actually vegetarian, I could barely keep it together. The part where she moved a bunch of her stuff into his apartment and put women's health products in his medicine cabinet.....wow.
While it did make me cringe, this film also had me in tears from laughing so hard. Andie's performances when she's with Ben are so outlandish and ridiculous, I couldn't help but laugh while I cringed. The scene where Ben is trying to play poker with his guy friends is the main one that comes to mind here, as seeing her embarrass herself in front of his friends was just extra hilarious.
What really solidified this film in my heart was the fact that, behind all the acting they were doing, Ben and Andie were actually perfect for each other. It shone through so brightly, especially when Ben took her to meet his family in Long Island. Who knew a game of bullshit could tell you so much about a person? The little tiny hints they drop throughout, like how she likes the same sports teams as him and such, made me so anxious to see how everything turned out.
Honorable mention: the diamond gala scene. I know I said I always dread the scene where all the truths are laid out on the table, but the way they each tried to get revenge on the other during such a refined event was so wonderfully crafted. Watching them get up on stage and sing a duet while arguing at the same time was such a rollercoaster.
At the end of the day, this film is a fantastic example of a rom com with just the right amount of cliches, cringe, laughter, and love. At ranking #3, our love fern will never die.
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