Failure to Launch is a 2006 American romantic comedy film. It is a loose remake of the French film Tanguy, being solely based on its premise, a 30-something manchild who does not want to leave home.
The film was widely panned by critics,[1] with notable film critic Richard Roeper stating that "it’s completely unbelievable."[2]
Plot
Tripp (Matthew McConaughey), an attractive man in his thirties, is still living with his parents Al (Terry Bradshaw) and Sue (Kathy Bates). Tripp's best friends Demo (Bradley Cooper) and Ace (Justin Bartha) are also still living in their parents' homes and seem proud of it. Al and Sue are not happy, and are fascinated when friends whose adult son has recently moved away from home reveal that they hired an expert to arrange the matter.
The expert is Paula (Sarah Jessica Parker), who believes that men continue to live at home out of low self-esteem. Her approach is to establish a relationship with the man to build up his confidence and transfer his attachment from his parents to her. Her step-by-step process is deceitful; while avoiding physical intimacy she allows her subject to fall in love with her, pretending to like what he likes, allowing him to help her through a (false) crisis, obtaining the approval of his friends, and giving him the opportunity to teach her something: he then moves out to become more independent.
Tripp is soon discovered to not fit any of Paula's previous profiles, having normal social skills and no problems with self-esteem. He does not commit to long term relationships, and uses his living with parents as a dumping mechanism. After an awkward encounter with his parents, Paula thwarts his attempt to dump her, stays for the night, all the while developing real feelings for him. They find themselves sailing unfamiliar waters and confide with their friends.
Paula's vocation exasperates her terminally-hip roommate, Kit (Zooey Deschanel), who believes that Paula's own breakup with a live-at-home man is the unhealthy motivation behind the job to which she has given over her whole life.
Ace discovers what is going on and blackmails Paula for a date with Kit; although Kit is more attracted to slacker Demo, the pair wind up bonding over a problem and fall in love. Ace spills the beans to Demo, who in turn ultimately reveals all to Tripp, leading to the film's crisis. Tripp and Paula split in bitterness and guilt, and parents and friends devise a plan to reconcile the two lovers. They tie up and gag Tripp and lock the two of them together in a room. In the end, it seems that love, and moving out of one's parents' house, is all part of following nature's course. The movie ends with Al and Sue in their empty nest, happily singing "Hit the Road Jack."
Cast
Reception
Box office
In its opening weekend, the film grossed a total of $24.6 million, ranking first in the United States box office results for that weekend. The film grossed a total of around $90 million in the United States box office and made $128,406,887 worldwide.[3]
Critical response
The film was poorly received by critics, gaining only 26% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[4] Some otherwise negative reviews singled out Zooey Deschanel's performance as the film's highlight[5][6][7]. One reviewer wrote that "Even with a relatively small role, she blows the whole movie to smithereens"[8].
See also
References
External links
