“The Heartbreak Kid” is an outrageous comedy, liberally seasoned with the patented over-the-top humor of directors Bobby and Peter Farrelly (“There’s Something About Mary,” “Dumb and Dumber”). Raucous and side-splitting, “The Heartbreak Kid” piles outlandish antics on top of wickedly twisted sight gags to create a hilarious comedy of errors.
After years of bachelorhood and ample pressure from his father, Doc, (Jerry Stiller) and best friend Mac, Eddie starts to wonder if he is being too picky about the women he meets. So when a chance encounter with an alluring blonde named Lila (Malin Akerman) leads to a sweet romance, Eddie impulsively proposes. But right after the wedding, as the newlyweds get to know each other on the drive down the California coast, Eddie begins to realize he’s made a terrible mistake. Soon after reaching their exotic Mexican hideaway, he falls for the down-to-earth Miranda (Michelle Monaghan), who has no clue he’s on his honeymoon. Now Eddie has to find a way to extricate himself from his days-old marriage without losing the girl of his dreams.
Synopsis
Unmarried and just turned 40, sporting goods store owner Eddie Cantrow (Ben Stiller) is on the sidelines of the dating game when he attends the wedding of his former fiancée. Feeling like the whole world has paired off except him, and egged on by his libidinous octogenarian father Doc (Jerry Stiller) and henpecked married friend Mac (Rob Corddry), Eddie is primed for a romance. Now all he needs is the girl.
After he interrupts an apparent mugging on the streets of San Francisco, Eddie meets Lila (Malin Akerman) and the pair quickly embark on a whirlwind romance, which leads to a hasty proposal. On the way to Mexico for their honeymoon, Eddie discovers his new bride not only has the face of an angel, but a trucker’s vocabulary and a nearly insatiable appetite for hilariously athletic sex. By the time they reach the swanky resort, Lila has transformed from a gentle and sweet life partner into a crass, tequila-swigging wench with a sordid past, leaving Eddie wondering what he’s gotten himself into.
After Lila refuses to leave their hotel room because of the sunburn to end all sunburns, Eddie consoles himself at the bar where he strikes up a casual conversation with Miranda (Michelle Monaghan), a laid-back high school lacrossed teacher who is as wholesome and grounded as Lila is flighty. Soon, the miserable newlywed is manufacturing excuses to leave his bride behind and spend time with Miranda. As he falls for Miranda’s down home allure, Eddie tries his best to level with both women. But a series of misunderstandings leads to a wildly funny confrontation among a man, two women and a Portuguese man o’ war.
About the Production
“I’ve got to be honest here. I don’t think it’s possible for a guy to go on his honeymoon, fall in love with another woman and have it all end happily.” – Mac
Four years ago, when Peter Farrelly heard about an updated “The Heartbreak Kid” script, his initial reaction was to pass on the project. “’The Heartbreak Kid’ is one of my all-time favorite movies,” says Farrelly. “My first instinct was ‘no way.’ I didn’t want to do it.” But after watching the movie again, he saw how readily the story would lend itself to gags, hijinks and assorted other Farrelly-isms.
The original film, made in 1972, was based on a short story by Bruce Jay Friedman adapted by Neil Simon and starring Charles Grodin and Cybill Shepherd. “With Scot Armstrong and Leslie Dixon’s script, the thing that fascinated us and really got our attention was that they had flipped it around.
In this one, Eddie marries the beautiful Cybill Shepherd character, goes on his honeymoon and then meets a woman who’s more his speed, a more down-to-earth, girl-next-door type.
That made it a more complex story, I thought.” Ben Stiller, who plays the title role in the new film, is also a huge fan of the original “The Heartbreak Kid.”
“It’s a classic,” says the actor. “It’s just a really funny movie, and I thought we had a chance to do something a little different. There is no improving the original. This is a different movie.
One of the major challenges for both the filmmakers and their star was making Eddie, a guy who ditches his wife on their honeymoon, sympathetic.
For Bobby Farrelly, Stiller himself is the key to keeping the audience on Eddie’s side. “Ben makes Eddie a sympathetic character,” says the director. “You understand where he’s coming from, and hopefully you root for him. Once you want good things to happen to him, we can get away with the big jokes that we like to pull.”
“The Heartbreak Kid” marks the first reunion for the Farrellys and Ben Stiller since “There’s Something About Mary” catapulted their respective careers into the stratosphere eight years ago.
“We’ve thought of Ben for other roles, but every time we came up with a movie he’s either been unavailable or he didn’t like it,” says Peter. “This one he really flipped for, and we were obviously thrilled to have him.”
“He’s the best reactor in all of Hollywood,” adds Bobby. “You can do all sorts of crazy things to him and the way he takes it is just hysterical. He’s also a really thorough actor. He thinks things through and he comes with a take on how that day is going to go, which is a real plus for directors. He has ideas about wardrobe, where people should sit in a scene; he’s extremely hands-on. But at the same time he is open to trying new things. After a take he might say, ‘Wow, that’s it,’ and not do anything to tweak it because it’s so good. Other times he’ll say, ‘That’s really good, but let’s try it a little bit more somber, or a bit happier,’ that kind of thing. His having such a strong point of view is a big help to us.”
Bradley Thomas, who has produced every film the Farrelly brothers have made, believes there’s a basic misconception about comic actors. “People think that they show up on the set and they are just funny,” says Thomas. “That’s not how it really is. With a lot of the comics, they’re very, very serious. Ben is a very serious guy. He probably cares more than any actor I’ve ever worked with.”
Malin Akerman, who plays Lila, the spurned wife, says working with Stiller was an amazing experience. “You don’t have to act much, you just kind of react to someone who’s that good. We were able to banter back and forth and sort of go off-script. We have a similar sarcasm, so it worked out really well.”
Akerman is equally enthusiastic about working with the Farrellys. “I would go all the way to Egypt just to work with them again,” she says. “They’re just so cool and laid-back; they’re just a couple dudes having a great time who just can’t believe they get to do this as their job. But they’re great at this kind of comedy and they know how to get it out of you. They kind of mimicked it for me and then I had to try it in a girl’s body.”
“You think your wife’s a nutcase because, on your honeymoon in a tropical paradise, she’s singing a lot, wanting to have sex around the clock and accidentally she got a little too much sun?” – Doc
Without studio pressure to feature an A-list star as Lila, the Farrellys were able to cast a wide net. They tested over 60 actresses before finding Akerman. “We found the best one,” says producer Thomas. “Her performance is just a tour de force. She is, I can honestly say, our greatest discovery. It’s a very demanding role. You have to be extremely likable and sweet, and also kind of psychotic. The whole movie hinged on her being brilliant and she’s ten times better than what we thought. She’s a genius.”
“Malin is a real discovery,” agrees Bobby Farrelly. “She’s a gifted comedienne and really, really surprised us. We knew she was pretty, we knew she was a good actress, had good timing skills, but we had no idea that she could hit the comedic high notes that the part called for. She made the character so much better than we had even envisioned.”
He even goes as far as to compare Akerman with some of the most acclaimed comic actors of our time. “We’ve worked with Bill Murray and Jim Carrey. You give them a role and you’re just stunned at how much better they make it than you had even hoped; they knock it out of the park. That’s what she’s done here. She’s done things with a grace and comedic timing we didn’t even imagine.”
Peter Farrelly thinks Akerman’s portrayal may persuade some audience members to root for Lila, who he calls a “crazy, wild, beautiful nutcase.”
“We tried to be very fair to Lila, because we didn’t want her to be very nice in the beginning and then just turn evil,” says Peter. “She just grows increasingly annoying, but in a way that some people in the audience won’t actually be annoyed by. I’m sure there’s going to be a group of guys who are like saying, ‘Eddie, don’t leave her, she’s spectacular.’ But she’s just not for Eddie.”
Akerman impressed the entire company by committing to acts that could only be conceived by the Farrellys. “I had moments when I couldn’t believe what I was doing,” she says. “It’s one thing to read the script and have a good laugh, but another when you have to do that part. I have to put on a merkin (a hair wig for private parts) and pull down my pants and pretend to pee on Ben Stiller with the camera right in my crotch. It’s not the most comfortable position to be in.”
The blonde beauty had to put her vanity aside for another essential part of the film. When Lila gets a severe sunburn, the makeup crew created a hideously realistic look for her. “My skin is peeling and they put some boils on me and I have blisters on my hands and it makes me look so unattractive and un-sexy,” she says. “It’s the last thing a man wants to see on his honeymoon – some creature reaching in for a kiss.”
Stiller was very impressed with his co-star’s gung-ho attitude. “She’s hilarious,” he says. “She had to do a lot of crazy things and really be okay with putting herself out there. She has this horrible sunburn for a lot of the movie and has to bare parts of her body, and she’s just a real sport.”
“This girl Miranda, Mac – who I had the horrible misfortune to meet on my honeymoon – She’s the one!” – Eddie
Michelle Monaghan plays Miranda, the “other woman,” portrayed by Cybill Shepherd in the 1972 Neil Simon version of “The Heartbreak Kid.” “She’s the voice of reason,” says Bobby Farrelly. “She’s the one that all the wackiness sort of bounces off. She’s like the Mary of this movie – an ideal, beautiful woman that you wait your whole life to meet.”
Stiller says of his co-star: “She’s the most likable person; sweet and just genuinely fun, and that personality is what the character is in the movie. I have to fall in love with her very quickly and the audience has to believe that I would go for her and she’s the right person. She has that naturally.”
Monaghan’s background is as much of a throwback as that of her character, notes Peter Farrelly. “She came out to Hollywood from the cornfields of Iowa, the whole thing,” he says. “She’s a great talent who is girl-next-door beautiful. She feels like an old-time movie star from the ‘40s, which is a dream come true for this role. She’s a movie star.”
The actress says her favorite scene was one in which she falls back over a wall into the ocean. “It was so much fun. I always like to do physical things like that. And I really liked working with Ben and having Jerry there as well. It reminded me of an old-school comedy.”
Casting Eddie’s father was probably the easiest choice the filmmakers had to make. They brought in Ben’s real-life dad, veteran comedian Jerry Stiller, who had already appeared with his son in “Zoolander” and “Heavy Weights.” “It was a great honor to work with Jerry,” says Bobby Farrelly. “We’ve never worked with him before, and always thought the world of him. To have Jerry actually playing Ben’s dad was an easy sell.
“He is one of those guys, you just look at him and you want to laugh,” says Bobby. “It’s a gift. When you meet him and talk to him, you are instantly in the mood to laugh. He’s fun, he’s fearless, and he’s a real trooper. He’ll work anyone under the table; he just keeps going.”
The elder Stiller was delighted to join the cast. “When I saw “There’s Something About Mary,” I thought it was one of the funniest movies of all time,” says Jerry Stiller. “The Farrellys know what’s funny. They think on their feet. While you’re doing your scene, they’ll give you something that will make it funnier. I work from the inside of the character and I never try to be funny. That’s not my style. When I have a director who understands what’s going on inside, they can enhance what I’m doing.”
Bobby says that Jerry Stiller’s character, Doc, is loosely based on his and Peter’s own father. “He’s supposed to be giving us words of wisdom and all, and you know it’s in there, but the things that stick with you are the audacious things he says.”
Working with his dad, Ben Stiller felt the pressure was off him to be funny, and it just came naturally. “He’s just hilarious,” he says. “He’s so unique and he does his thing and since he’s my father, it’s there already. I didn’t really have to act.
“He steals every scene, which is exactly what you want,” he continues. “He cracks me up all the time. He’s just funny. He’s a funny person, and he’s a lovable person. He’s just a great guy.”
Jerry has equally high praise for his son as a colleague. “Ben is a generous actor,” he says. “Generosity allows the other person to relax so they discover and go further than what is on paper. He’s fast, he thinks fast, and you want to be as good as him. It’s not easy to do that, but he allows the space for the other actor to come in.”
Akerman says of the Stillers: “They’re so cute together. Jerry is the sweetest man I’ve ever met. You just want to smoosh him—in the nicest way. It’s just that he’s so polite and Ben is so polite. I love seeing family together like that.”
The Farrellys turned to comedian Carlos Mencia for the role of Tito Hernandez, a free-spirited hotel employee. “We needed a guy who sold the Mexican flavor,” says Bobby Farrelly. “He’s got so much energy and bravado, and he really knocked it out of the park for us.”
For his part, Mencia says he wasn’t sold right away. “It’s very embarrassing for me to be this person. But they liked my flavor. And once they showed me how much money I would make I said holy— I would love to be in it!”
Stiller found himself calling Mencia by his character’s name, Tito, even when the cameras weren’t rolling. “He’s got this incredible wig and a huge moustache. When he puts it on I feel like he’s another person. He’ll show up to the set as Carlos Mencia, and then when he comes out to the scene, it’s like Uncle Tito’s here. Uncle Tito’s in the house.”
Production notes provided by DreamWorks Pictures.
The Heartbreak Kid
Starring: Ben Stiller, Michelle Monaghan, Malin Akerman, Jerry Stiller, Rob Corddry, Carlos Mencia, Scott Wilson
Directed by: Peter, Bobby Farrelly
Screenplay by: Scot Armstrong, Leslie Dixon, Bobby Farrelly
Release Date: October 5, 2007
MPAA Rating: R for strong sexual content, crude humor, language, a scene of drug use.
Studio: DreamWorks Pictures
Box Office Totals
Domestic: $36,787,257 (28.8%)
Foreign: $90,979,393 (71.2%)
Total: $127,766,650 (Worldwide)