"How can it be bulls#!t to state a preference!?"

Rating: 10/10 (21 September 2001)

I went through a really god-awful break-up a while back. I was depressed and thoroughly miserable and I must have watched this movie every night for at least two weeks. While it didn't get me back together with my girlfriend, it certainly cheered me up and put a big smile on my face. It also gave me a different perspective on relationships and how to handle them easier.
There is no plot here. The movie opens with Rob getting dumped by his girlfriend, Laura. He then proceeds to tell the viewer about his all time top five break-ups, in chronological order. We get flashbacks of his four most important breakups, starting when he was fourteen. We also get to see Rob's record shop, which "attracts the bare minimum of window shoppers". Dick and Barry are his employees who chase off what few customers the store brings in. You see, these guys consider themselves musical experts and anyone who doesn't meet their standard of musical knowledge is refused service.
The films biggest laughs come from Rob's self-deprecating remarks and Barry's antics in the store. Jack Black plays Barry and I'm looking forward to seeing him in more stuff. He really shines here as the obnoxious clerk who was hired for three days a week but shows up every day. Dick (Todd Louiso) is the quiet one who looks a lot like Moby with his skinny body and bald head. His meek, shy manner is the polar opposite of Barry. His facial expressions are very amusing and his and Barry's arguements are hilarious.

The film moves along at a nice leisurely pace, without ever getting boring, as Rob attempts to find out what keeps going wrong and why he is forever doomed at relationships. Amidst all of this, he discovers the musical talents of a couple of skater/punks he busted for shop-lifting. Barry (who doesn't play any musical instruments) forms a band called the Sonic Death Monkeys and Dick finds a girlfriend. Rob is also insanely jealous over Laura's new boyfriend, Ian (none other than a pony-tailed Tim Robbins). Ian is the kind of pretentious, new-age fruit-loop that Rob strongly dislikes and (in this case) hates with a purple passion. He has only one confrontation with Ian and, done three different ways, it is one of the film's funniest scenes.
I've always been a huge John Cusack fan. Ever since I was seven years old, "Better Off Dead" has been one of my favorite comedies since I was old enough to laugh and "One Crazy Summer" follows close behind. While many stars who got their start in the eighties have faded out, Cusack has really come into his own by finding (and in this case co-writing) good, challenging material that continues to show what a good actor he really is.