Cast: Chris Pine, Reese Witherspoon and Tom Hardy
Director: McG
Ratings: 1.5/5
No matter how much they go on a war, it is a losing battle...
By Priyanka Ketkar
Will you chose love over friendship? Will a girl be the reason for your broken friendship? Will you rather sleep than go for this movie? Well I don't know about the first two questions but the answer to the third one is definitely Yes. This Means War directed by McG is the kind of a movie which should have been entirely sent back for a reshoot. This perfectly dreadful romantic action comedy manages to embarrass its three eminently attractive leading players in every scene, in every sense.
Two of the CIA's top field agents—FDR (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy)—are put on desk duty after a covert operation turns out to be rather overt. This leaves international arms dealer Heinrich (Til Schweiger) at large and leaves him seeking vengeance for his brother's death at any cost. Forced to lay low, FDR and Tuck spend a little time on their personal lives. They never could've predicted they'd end up falling for the exact same woman—perky but perpetually single consumer advocate Lauren (Reese Witherspoon).
Lauren is single, yes but she is also looking for a secure man as she is has "trust" issues and hence she is confused over which guy is the better one. Well, since "guys always two-time hence you have all the right to do that, enjoy yourself, and make you decision" she decides to date both the guys simultaneously. Unable to decide which guy is more charming and more perfect, she decides that only solution is... to sleep with them. Unaware that the guys know about her likes and dislike only 'coz they have her under surveillance, she is completely swept off her feet and slowly starts falling for one of them. Meanwhile, FDR & Tuck who are best friends turn into foes over this girl. Who will win? Who will lose? Oh yes, I forgot...isn't there some underworld dude after their lives? Yeah, guessed it right... It is going to be the "damsel in distress" situation. Then comes the climax and it makes no sense at all.
As it stands, THIS MEANS WAR feels undercooked and somewhat hastily edited. The three leads act as if they have been forced to do so with no chemistry whatsoever. Chris Pine is still fine, but Tom Hardy is ridiculously under-used or if I may say so, wasted completely. I have liked Resse Witherspoon before but in this movie she is just annoying with her continuous, unnecessary grin. What is more putting-off is the absolute lack of any chemistry between the lead actors. The romance is hardly there and the action is just jerky camera movement.
The three leads do look awfully good doing very stupid things and all will survive to rise another day. The sooner this one recedes into the rear-view mirror the better for all concerned. And seriously, even if This Means War, it is anyway a losing battle.