THE DILEMMA (Ron Howard). 111 minutes. Opens Friday (January 14). For venues, trailers, and times, see Movies. Rating: N
The Dilemma marks the latest step in Ron Howard’s attempt to recapture his past glory as a populist filmmaker, and apparently that involves making a terrible Vince Vaughn comedy.
As generic as its title, The Dilemma casts Vaughn in his standard role of a motormouth Chicago hustler on the verge of making it big. He and his best friend (Kevin James) are developing a process that makes electric cars sound just as loud and growly as gas-powered models. When Vaughn discovers that James’s wife (Winona Ryder) is having an affair, he twists himself into knots trying to decide whether to spill the beans.
Howard keeps trying to play the sitcommy premise for something approaching drama, but he neglected to inform Vaughn, who sticks to his usual shtick. (By contrast, Jennifer Connelly brings too much gravity to the role of his girlfriend.) James fills out his stooge role with admirable range and physical grace, but he’s limited by a plot that requires him to be oblivious to everything around him. And Ryder appears to have shot this between visits to the Black Swan set.
There’s exactly one laugh, and it involves a dead fish. That kind of speaks for itself.
