Matthew McConaughey Blunders Toward Independence in Failure to Launch

I have a mixed track record when it comes to movies starring Matthew McConaughey. Sometimes he’s great, as in his spirited turn as a coach who helps revive a tragedy-struck college football team in We Are Marshall. Sometimes, he makes me cringe, as I’m doing right now as I recall his role as a womanizing sleazebag in the lamentable Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. I feared that I might be veering closer to the latter with 2006’s Failure to Launch, but I decided to give the romantic comedy a try anyway.

Tripp (McConaughey) is a bit of a womanizer too, but at least he sticks to one girl at a time. The commitment-shy boat salesman feels like he’s got it made. Sweep the ladies off their feet, have a little fun with them, invite them home for some hanky-panky… and let them find out that his gorgeous residence actually belongs to his parents. Yes, he’s 35 and still living at home, and his dates all consider that a major turn-off – especially when Mom (Kathy Bates) or Dad (Terry Bradshaw) could poke a head in his bedroom at a most inopportune time. He seems quite content with this living arrangement, but his parents aren’t. They’re ready to be empty nesters. So they call in Paula (Sarah Jessica Parker) to help their little fledgling fly the coop.

Paula has built a lucrative career out of getting men like Tripp to fall for her, which motivates them to get on their feet and become independent. She’s got it down to a science, and Tripp is putty in her hands. Their courtship is going so well that she expects to have him out of his house in no time. The only catch? Tripp is not the only one falling in love. Paula has prided herself on her ability to maintain emotional distance; could Tripp’s surprising hold on her ruin his parents’ plan and her career? Will two hearts be broken before all is said and done?

I found the movie’s premise interesting. For a number of reasons, adult children living with their parents is increasingly common in America. There’s almost a presupposition here that no woman in her right mind would ever knowingly date a guy in such a situation, which seems to be overstating things a little. Then again, I may just feel defensive of these fellas since I live at home myself. (The movie also seems to imply that this is chiefly a male phenomenon, but I know several more women who live with their parents than men. Hmm… Do I smell a sequel?) Paula’s tactics seem very effective, though I would think that if she is the main factor in getting a man to leave his parents, there would be a serious chance of him running back to them after the relationship dissolves. In any case, she seems to be setting all these guys up for heartache.

Nonetheless, I couldn’t help finding Paula pretty likable, and I do get the sense that it’s not just about the money. She wants to encourage her unwitting clients to spread their wings a little. Meanwhile, Tripp is a loafer and a ladies’ man, which makes him rather annoying, but he’s also got a respectable job that suits him and a tender big brotherly relationship with a young man he refers to as his nephew. It’s through this boy that we and Paula best glimpse his softer side.

Tripp is aptly named, since he seems to have a special knack for taking pratfalls, particularly when wild creatures are involved, and his hapless buddies Ace (Justin Bartha) and Demo (Bradley Cooper) are the worst wingmen ever on these occasions. Paula’s pal Kit (Zooey Deschanel) is a bit more helpful, though she spends half the movie glowering over the racket made by a mockingbird plaguing the house she and Paula share. Despite her morose countenance, I found her one of the funniest characters and in some ways enjoyed the romantic subplot involving her more than the main one. Bates is funny too as the mom who smothers Tripp with affection but simultaneously wants him out of the house. For her, letting go is a struggle, while Bradshaw’s gruff manner as Tripp’s dad demonstrates that he would be more than happy to see his son venture off on his own.

On the whole, I found Failure to Launch a pretty engaging comedy and far from the worst McConaughey vehicle I’ve seen. It’s a bit silly at times, while at others it’s thought-provoking, prompting rumination over the reasons adults live with their parents and the issues involved in such an arrangement. Mostly, though, it’s just a light romance with a feel-good conclusion and some pretty good laughs along the way.