The Film
At this point, Jennifer Aniston has exhausted every page of the rom-com rule book. She fell in love with a gay Paul Rudd in The Object of My Affection, played a free-spirit opposite the uptight Ben Stiller in Along Came Polly, and engaged in a War of the Roses-type battle with Vince Vaughn in The Break-Up. She has managed to work a few of the other standards into her resume, while filling in gaps with Friends episodes. However, there is one thing that The Switch has that most of her other projects have not: Jason Bateman.
Bateman has been on a roll since 2003's cult TV comedy, Arrested Development. Since then, he's popped up in a lot of big movies, most notably Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, the aforementioned Aniston movie The Break-Up, and Juno. The Switch thrusts him into more of a leading man role, and frankly, it really suits him.
With her biological clock ticking away, Kassie decides to have a baby via a sperm donor (Hard Candy's Patrick Wilson). During the "pre-pregnancy" party, a disapproving Wally gets stinking drunk and swaps out her sample.
Aniston usually gets a bad rap, but she's actually quite charming here. However, this really isn't her movie to crap up. It's really all about Wally and his long-lost Mini Me (played by a very cute Thomas Robinson).
The Switch was marketed poorly and timed poorly. It came out at the same time as Jennifer Lopez's The Back-Up Plan, which has a few similarities, but bombed with critics. Let's make no mistake, though; The Switch features the tagline, "The most unexpected comedy ever conceived," which could not be further from the truth. It's a little predictable, with the saving grace being the film's leads. However, it's still enjoyable, especially for rom-com fans.
The Picture
Overall, The Switch has a very sharp image. There's some great detail on Wally's spiky hair, city views, and in all of the characters' faces. However, for a rom-com, the colors are a bit muted. If a "pre-pregnancy" party invite and confetti sperm can't achieve a color pop, you can imagine how the rest of the movie looks. That said, the movie ends on a better looking note, with some lush greens and other homey colors. It's certainly not horrible in any sense of the word. It's nice, but a little inconsistent.
The Sound
This film may be slightly predictable, but its DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track does pack in a few surprises. Like most rom-coms, The Switch is dialogue-heavy, and that portion is delivered quite well. However, it's the surround action that gives the genre a nice little boost. From the opening restaurant scene and the pre-pregnancy party to street noises and a hearty dose of Nu Shooz, The Switch offers very good use of the soundfield -- at least for this type of movie.
The Extras
The Switch was sort of a blip on the box office. Maybe that's why Lionsgate didn't really bother with many extras. There's no commentary and no theatrical trailer. What you do get is a 15-minute featurette that talks about the film from its (ahem) conception, as well as bloopers and deleted scenes. If you're going to watch anything, you might want to check out the alternate ending as well as the alternate "switch" scenes. Both are quick and mildly entertaining, but you will certainly see why they were both left out of the film.
Final Thoughts
Despite some predictable moments, The Switch is a sweet, entertaining 101 minutes. Also, you have to give it up to the writers for working lice into a rom-com. Even with love and lice, the movie didn't do very well at the box office. Part of that could have been marketing. Either way, a nice transfer and a great cast make this one a decent pick for fans of the genre.
Product Details
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