The Break-Up (2006) * * *

Directed by:  Peyton Reed

Starring:  Vince Vaughn, Jennifer Aniston, Jon Favreau, Joey Lauren Adams, Judy Davis, Vincent D'Onofrio, John Michael Higgins

Things go south quickly for Gary and Brooke, who one minute are hosting a dinner party for their families and the next are breaking up because Brooke feels unappreciated and Gary doesn't do much to dissuade her opinion.     Their meeting and courtship is shown in photos over the opening credits with Queen's "You're My Best Friend" playing on the soundtrack.    As the breakup gets uglier, we see more that they aren't meant to be together.    To the film's credit, it doesn't force a happy ending on us with a last-minute reconciliation.    Things play out as they should.    After all, it wouldn't be right to have these two spend 90 minutes of the movie doing everything to stay apart and the last 10 minutes trying to get us to ignore the first 90.

Gary (Vaughn) is a tour guide for a tour company run by his brother Dennis (D'Onofrio), who is all over Gary about keeping his tour logs up to date.    He is an avid Cubs fan who records the games and makes a mess of the living room.   Brooke works at an art gallery for the sophisticated and somewhat wacky Marilyn Dean (Davis).    Things seem to be OK with the couple in the beginning as they prepare for the dinner party, even though Gary only bought Brooke 4 lemons when she required 12 for a garnish she was making.    After the dinner party, which was complete with Brooke's brother Richard (Higgins) leading the table in an a capella version of "Owner Of A Lonely Heart", Brooke is furious when Gary doesn't help in cleaning up and this escalates to a nasty break-up.    "I want to be with someone who gives a shit," Brooke tells Gary before calling him a prick.

The two are forced to share their condo until they can sell it.    Jason Bateman plays their mutual friend/realtor who informs them matter-of-factly, "I would sell this place without taking a commission, but my company policy forces me to take one."    He's all heart.    As it becomes clearer that Gary and Brooke won't be reconciling, we get a glimpse of why they should be apart.    Gary is a nice guy, but self-absorbed and takes Brooke for granted.    "You do what you want to do," Gary's friend Johnny O (Favreau) says, "When was the last time we went to a White Sox game?  And the Sox playing against the Cubs doesn't count."  

It's clear they have outgrown each other.   They attempt to change things, but it's too late.    The Break-Up, by the way, is a comedy with some serious elements.      It doesn't get slapsticky or sitcomish.    In fact, the tone is rather somber, which is appropriate for a film about the ending of a long relationship.     Gary and Brooke have their shortcomings, but as played by Vaughn and Aniston are intelligent, nice people who fall out of love sometimes painfully.     John Michael Higgins as Aniston's brother is the leader of an a capella singing group called "The Tone Rangers."    Just that name alone is the comedy gift that keeps on giving.