Zach Braff has done well for himself in the TV world; his appearance in this film will no doubt draw fans off the couch and into theatre chairs. Myself, I’m more familiar with his film work in Garden State, which, in addition to a leading role, he also scripted & directed. That’s a good film; he’s quite likeable on screen there as he is in “The Ex.”

But, the title “The Ex” is a bit misleading. The fellow (Jason Bateman) in question was actually more of an old friend/one night stand of Amanda Peet’s character. His persistent pining for her, in part, becomes the central conflict of the film. Though it spawns a funny tit-for-tat rivalry, other important elements of the film fall victim to this conflict. For one, Zach is almost always the sympathetic character, but his interactions become vindictive, vengeful, selfish and blatantly mean. That’s too bad, because he becomes nothing more than one of the fakers he most despises and we as viewers lose an important main character to root for. This dip into the dark side could have been pulled off if the filmmakers spent a little more time introducing Zach as more of a truth teller/loser. Add a strong moment of self-realization to the picture or at least better sell the idea that he’s lowering himself to support his family. Else the film fails as a story, which is really too bad because it’s quite sharp as a comedy. I also appreciated the careful added funny bits that (aside from the story – which didn’t) kept the film feeling real.

Overall, I quite enjoyed the silly factor of the film -- and laughed a lot. But, I seriously lamented the guts and heart of the thing falling by the wayside.

This film screened at a Krikorian Theatre.

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