The Dilemma (2011)

A man discovers that his best friend's wife is having an affair.

Director:

Ron Howard

Writer:

Allan Loeb

Stars:

Vince Vaughn, Kevin James, Winona Ryder

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Vince Vaughn	...	Ronny Valentine
Kevin James	...	Nick Brannen
Jennifer Connelly	...	Beth
Winona Ryder	...	Geneva
Channing Tatum	...	Zip
Queen Latifah	...	Susan Warner
Amy Morton	...	Diane Popovich
Chelcie Ross	...	Thomas Fern
Eduardo N. Martinez	...	Felix
Rance Howard	...	Burt
Clint Howard	...	Herbert Trimpy
Guy Van Swearingen	...	Saul
Troy West	...	Dr. Rosenstone
Laura Whyte	...	Sue
Grace Rex	...	Cousin Betty

Storyline

A man finds out that what you don't say to a friend is just as important as what you do is this story of how far you can bend a brotherly bond before it snaps. Since college, confirmed bachelor Ronny (Vaughn) and happily married Nick (James) have been through thick and thin. Now partners in an auto design firm, the two pals are vying to land a dream project that would launch their company. Ronny's girlfriend, Beth (Connelly), and Nick's wife, Geneva (Ryder), are by their sides. But Ronny's world is turned upside down when he inadvertently sees Geneva out with another man and makes it his mission to get answers. As the amateur investigation dissolves into mayhem, he learns that Nick has a few secrets of his own. Now, with the clock ticking and pressure mounting on the biggest presentation of their careers, Ronny must decide what will happen if he reveals the truth to his best friend.

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Plot Keywords:

male rear nudity | bare butt | friend | best friend | investigation | 

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Taglines:

The truth hurts.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements involving sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Spain]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 January 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cheaters

Filming Locations:

2000 Naperville Wheaton Rd., Naperville, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$70,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$17,816,230, 16 January 2011, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$48,475,290

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$69,721,966

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures,Imagine Entertainment,Spyglass Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film's trailer caused an almighty fuss because of one line where Vince Vaughn's character says "Electric cars are gay. I mean, not homosexual gay, but my-parents-are-chaperoning-the-dance gay". Universal contacted the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) to see how they felt about it; not surprisingly GLAAD were not keen on it. Sure enough, the trailer attracted a lot of criticism for this one line when it was released, even being publicly criticized by Anderson Cooper. Universal were forced to release a new trailer without the offending line. Co-Producer and Director Ron Howard, however, refused to cut the line from the film itself as he felt it was tantamount to censorship.

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Goofs

At the hockey game Geneva gets a text message notification and she turns to answer it. In the next shot she again turns to answer it.

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Quotes

Ronny Valentine: I'd like to make a toast, to Burt and Sue. Wow, 50 years. I'd like to think that something that got you through those 50 years is a little friend I'd like to call honesty.
Burt: And love.
Ronny Valentine: Yes, that, which I think goes along with love.
Cousin Betty: And similar interests.
Ronny Valentine: Excuse me, who are you?
Cousin Betty: I'm Cousin Betty.
Ronny Valentine: First?
Cousin Betty: Second.
Ronny Valentine: You see, that doesn't really qualify. Someone can have sex with their second cousin and the kid would still be fine. You can't hide from the truth because it will come back.

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Connections

References Weird Science (1985)

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Soundtracks

Cosmic Egg
Written by Andrew Stockdale
Performed by Wolfmother
Courtesy of Modular Recordings/Universal Music Australia/Interscope Records
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

Tests patience with boring story lines, but Vaughn and James can save it

I like titles where one word can refer to multiple things occurring in the movie. "The Dilemma" can mean, will Ronny (Vince Vaughn) propose to girlfriend Beth (Jennifer Connelly)? or when Ronny catches Geneva (Winona Ryder) cheating on best friend Nick (Kevin James), should he tell him? Will Ronny and Nick be able to land and keep the lucrative Chrysler deal to save their company? Unfortunately, none of these story lines are particularly interesting or very funny.

Vince Vaughn is his usual self, and Kevin James can be both funny and the nerdy engineer. But the problems occur at the very beginning, first when we realize that one of the best actresses in the cast, Ms. Connelly, is only there to smile and look pretty, and then we start concentrating on Winona Ryder who appears as though she's acting in "Girl, Interrupted" instead; her character is just way too deranged looking to be enjoyable. For what should be a simple buddy comedy, they added way too many sub-plots and although there were a few laughs, it was mostly boring and not all that funny.

By the end, the film settled down a bit more, and we got to concentrate on Ronny and Nick. Vaughn and James are the only two actors in the film who actually belong in such a film, and I enjoyed their camaraderie. They were good characters, funny guys, and decent people. "The Dilemma" isn't horribly written, had a few jokes, and I was smiling at the end, but it tested my patience just a bit too much.