Dreary 'Super Ex-Girlfriend' needs a hero

David Germain, Associated Press

Friday, July 21, 2006

One of the freshest movie premises of the summer - and one of the best casting choices, Uma Thurman as a superhero using her powers to exact payback on the man who jilted her - are utterly wasted in My Super Ex-Girlfriend. This comedy is so unfunny that it's like director Ivan Reitman and company had their senses of humor tranquilized from guzzling kryptonite lattes.

First-time screenwriter Don Payne, a veteran writer for The Simpsons, hit on a potentially delightful premise but executes it blandly as My Super Ex- Girlfriend lumbers through dreary sight gags and drearier patter.

With his aw-shucks plainness, co-star Luke Wilson is a weak and boring counterpart to Thurman. It's not too believable that her wonder woman of a superhero would fall for this sleepy sheep in the first place, let alone care enough to go hell-hath-no-fury ballistic on him after he dumps her.

Thurman stars as Jenny Johnson, whose teenage encounter with a meteorite gave her superstrength, the ability to fly and other powers. Toiling as a mild-mannered art curator by day, Jenny moonlights as G-Girl, a hot, chic superhero fighting crime and doing the usual good deeds.

Trouble is, Jenny seems to have missed out on the mentoring that taught Superman and Spider-Man that great power brings great responsibility. Needy and neurotic, Jenny becomes a clinging girlfriend to architect Matt Saunders (Wilson), who's initially thrilled at bedding a superhero but soon decides to break it off over her possessive behavior. Jenny vows revenge, especially as Matt begins to romance co-worker Hannah (Anna Faris). A scene where Jenny tosses a live shark at Matt is mildly amusing, but most of her other little retributions are tame and lame.

Thurman is ravishing as G-Girl and alluring in a schoolmarmish way as the mousy Jenny, and she injects far more spirit into the character and dialogue than the script contains. She's endearingly compulsive as Jenny and boisterously psychotic as G-Girl in reprisal mode.

Wilson is so banal that he kind of evaporates alongside Thurman. Even worse, Rainn Wilson as Matt's know-it-all buddy is given such feeble wisecracks to spout that he kind of evaporates alongside Matt.

In retrospect, Reitman owes so much of his early reputation to Bill Murray, who elevated Stripes, the Ghostbusters movies and even Meatballs to comic heights the scripts probably didn't merit. Turn back the clock 20 years and imagine how My Super Ex-Girlfriend might have turned out with Murray and say, Ghostbusters co-star Sigourney Weaver as the spurned ex. That's a comedy we'd like to see.