The Bounty Hunter

The Bounty Hunter introduces us to our main characters pretty quickly, not bothering to leave any question as to what the movie is about or what direction it's going to travel. In fact, if you've seen the trailer at all, you have a pretty good idea walking into the theater of exactly what you're in for. Milo (Gerard Butler) is a bounty hunter ex-cop who eagerly takes the open bounty for his ex-wife Nicole (Jennifer Aniston), who is a reporter for a New York City newspaper. Why does she have a bounty on her? She skipped her court date to follow a hot lead on a suicide case that is more than it appears to be. Following that lead, of course, gets her into hot water with a thug and drug dealer named Mahler (Peter Greene). Meanwhile, Milo's being chased down by two thugs (Joel Garland and Ritchie Coster) because Milo has a pretty large gambling debt. I'll spare you the rest. You know how this ends.

This is a movie that relies almost entirely upon the audience's admiration for its two stars. When we get an introduction to her character, every man she passes, including the men that work with her every single day at the paper, go out of their way to stare at her, ahem, assets. This movie wants you to believe that Nicole is the perfect woman, and it goes as far as making sure that no other woman in Aniston's league was cast in the movie. As for Milo, the only other men in the movie that are anywhere as attractive as Butler play villains or suspected villains. This movie is very self-conscious and self-aware about what makes a romantic comedy work, and it tries really, really, really hard to pass those tests. It tries hard enough that it's noticeable and off-putting. Most men find Jennifer Aniston to be an extremely attractive woman. A good number of women find Gerard Butler rather handsome as well. These points are generally well understood. They don't need reinforcing. 

Director Andy Tennant has made a living off of movies like this. After all, this is the guy that brought us Sweet Home Alabama and Hitch, both movies superior to this one, but both movies that suffer from the same formulaic plot and cliches. It's completely unsurprising to learn that Butler's character drives a classic Oldsmobile Delta 88 Convertible with a baby-blue paint job. In fact, it'd be disappointing in some ways to see him drive around in a Cobalt or a Prius. When Nicole and Milo hop in a golf cart, there's no question where that golf cart is going to wind up. We get stock comic relief, if you want to call it that, from the guy way out of Nicole's league that follows her around like a love-struck teenager. Milo has a gambling problem, so of course we know where Nicole and Milo will wind up (remember that the story takes place in New York City and New Jersey). And most of the characters we meet along the way are stereotypes for everything we imagine New Jersey to be (though strangely, Tennant forgot that New Jersey requires every gas station to be full service only as there are numerous shots of characters pumping their own gas). I wouldn't be giving anything away by informing that in the end, the guy gets the girl. You don't need to sit through the stale jokes and minimalist dialogue to figure that out.

Seeing The Bounty Hunter makes me re-question why it is that this movie and ones similar to it even bother existing at all. They're completely mindless. No new ground is being broken here. You're not being challenged to think. The jokes aren't particularly funny (unless you find Butler being kicked in the crotch and Aniston being handcuffed to a litany of inanimate objects amusing). They follow a pretty strict blueprint and sub out the characters and situations as required, but that's essentially the difference. Romantic comedies are pushed towards women, and women consume them even though these movies don't particularly like women, especially ones that are career-driven. Being career oriented is considered to be a major flaw that needs to be addressed, and in The Bounty Hunter, a large reason why these two are divorced is because of Nicole's dedication to her career as a reporter. It's profession that requires an extraordinary amount of work and dedication if one is to move up to a position which brings in a salary that allows for merely a comfortable existence. By design, these movies are demeaning to women who have decided that they would like to be successful in their career and not rely on a man to take care of them. And they're demeaning to men that believe that it's important to support and cherish a woman that is so ambitious and driven.

When The Bounty Hunter opens, we're treated to no less than two crotch shots before the first ten minutes are through. After sitting through it, I have to say that I have a new appreciation for what getting kicked in the groin by a movie feels like.