Product Details

• Actors: Jason Bateman, Mia Farrow, Charles Grodin, Donal Logue, Amanda Peet
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Weinstein Company
• DVD Release Date: August 21, 2007
• Run Time: 84 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000NDJGTK
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #35,039 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When a movie sits on the shelf for a year, the consensus is that it must be a dud. Formerly known as Fast Track, Jesse Peretz's third and most commercial feature may not be a dud, but it comes perilously close. With the success of Garden State, it was inevitable that The Ex would be marketed as a romantic comedy, except it isn't. Sure, there's romance between Tom (Zach Braff) and his pregnant wife, Sofia (Amanda Peet, Igby Goes Down), but this is mostly a black comedy about the ad game, like How To Get Ahead in Advertising. After their baby is born, Sofia puts her legal career on hold to care for little Oliver, but then Tom loses his job as chef (Paul Rudd cameos as his boss), so they move from New York to Ohio where her father, Bob (Charles Grodin in fine fettle), secures Tom a gig as assistant associate creative at his New Age-style ad agency. Their money woes are a thing of the past, but new problems await. The biggest is creative director Chip (Jason Bateman), who briefly dated Sofia in high school. A longtime wheelchair user, Chip resents Tom for stealing his limelight--and for his relationship with Sofia. So, he sets out to turn everyone against his competition (their co-workers include SNL's Fred Armisen and Amy Poehler). Because Chip has such a genial manner, Tom's complaints strike others as unjustified paranoia. By the time he figures out a way to pay Chip back, it's hard to care after all the pratfalls and bits of funny business that fall flat more often than not. There are worse ways to spend 89 minutes, but any random episode of Scrubs or Arrested Development offers more laughs. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Product Description

Tom (Braff) and Sofia (Peet) have just had their first baby and that means it is time for Tom to grow up. But, when Tom goes to work for his father-in-law, his new boss Chip (Bateman) seems to have it out for him. Tom soon discovers that Chip is still carrying a flame for Sophia from their high school days. Now, Chip will stop at nothing to see Tom out of the company and out of Sophia’s life. As the two go head to head, Tom must expose Chip’s dirty tricks and push him out of the picture forever.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I think I may have turned your father into a problem drinker, August 25, 2007

By	incubus1 - See all my reviews

I love Zach Braff. Tis the reason my anticipation to see this film was so high. Garden State and The Last Kiss were both amazing movies but I wanted to see him play a character like JD from Scrubs. You know, the kinda wacky, really funny, guy. Enter The Ex.

In no way is this the greatest or funniest movie you'll ever see, let's get that straight right now. And honestly, your enjoyment of this movie will probably be based solely on whether you like Zach Braff or Jason Bateman since they're the primary characters. Everything about this movie is predictable, there's no surprises and I think that that's one of the best things about The Ex. It doesn't try to be something it isn't. However, there isn't that tired 'boy gets girl/boy loses girl/boy gets girl back' scenario which is a good thing.

Tom (Braff) and wife, Sofia (Peet), move to Ohio after their son is born to try and start anew, thanks to a job offer from Sofia's dad. That's when Tom meets Chip (Bateman), a handicapped guy who is gonna be acting as his mentor at the new job. You can guess what happens next and probably be right.

The thing that keeps The Ex funny throughout is far and away Tom and Chip's fued. I'm sure that's why everyone who heard about this movie wanted to see it, and it's just as funny as I thought it'd be. Now you may think differently. Past that, there are some memorable scenes, but only fans of the actors in it are gonna remember this film. Worth the money though.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved the Theatrical Version... not so much the DVD, August 23, 2007

By	W. Withers - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I really liked this movie when I saw it in theaters.. it made me laugh and not very many movies can do that. So when I bought it I was all excited about watching it again. The DVD version is nothing like the movie I saw at the theater. They cut all the good parts out!!! I want them to release a theaterical release version so I can have the movie that I thought I bought originally.

16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars "The Ex" Does Not Mark The Spot, June 7, 2007

By	Mark Eremite "This Is A Display Model Only" (Seoul, South Korea) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

It's never a good sign when filmmakers can't figure out what to call their films. This one was originally marketed under the name of "Fast Track" (the defunct title also shows up in the end credits -- whoops!), indicating that it's about the hijinks to be found in the corporate zeitgeist. Then the name was changed, ostensibly to draw focus to the alpha male struggle that makes up much of the plot.

Such card-swapping doesn't make much difference. This movie, by any other name, would smell just as stanky. Zach Braff, donning a personality as interesting as acetate, plays Tom Reilly, a recently fired chef who gets a job at his father-in-law's advertising agency. Also employed there? His wife's sorta-kinda-ex-boyfriend, Chip, who also happens to be a passive-aggressive wheelchair-bound jerk.

So, let's see ... the advertising milieu means lots of commercial gags, we have an upwardly-mobile careerwoman stuck playing homemaker in suburban Ohio ("Look at all the white people," Tom says when they first drive into town), Tom is working for his father-in-law (a wealth of material there, even if it is dusty), and look at that cast! Zach Braff, Amanda Peet, Jason Bateman, Charles Grodin, Mia Farrow, Donal Logue, Amy Poehler, Fred Armisen, Paul Rudd, Romany Malco. I love all those folks! On paper, this looks like it has the potential to be a great movie.

Maybe they should've written some more stuff on that paper, though. Like a coherent plot, or funny jokes, or creative character struggles, for example. Instead, we have pratfall after pratfall, lots of "cripple jokes," and a kid who can swallow an entire hamburger without chewing once.

Braff and Peet play it straight to an entire cadre of wack-jobs (Sofia attends New Age Baby Classes where moms ask their infants for permission to pick them up; Tom's co-workers toss around a pretend "teamwork" ball and aren't allowed to say "I'm sorry" unless in writing), but none of these weirdos is given much room to stretch. Of all the talent in the film, only Grodin's father-in-law Bob comes the closest to making an impression.

It's not his fault. The script needs multiple doctors. Chip sabotages Tom every chance he can get, but instead of calmly explaining his predicament to his family and friends, Tom pulls the classic screwball comedy move of fighting fire with fire, making himself look jealous, insenstive to Chip's handicap, and pretty much crazy. I'd even accept this turn of events if Tom's responses were a little zanier than, for example, stealing Chip's yogurt or (very very) poorly concealing a camera beneath a tented magazine.

These are really bad ideas, both for revenge and for a movie. The makers of this dud should've done more than just tinker with the title; they should've retooled the whole thing, preferably with the help of the comedically proven cast.