Just tolerable viewing!

Rating: 6/10 (6 July 2016)

I'll be honest, when I first started watching this, I wasn't expecting anything too great, or original. The premise doesn't exactly feel logical (woman wants to become a respectable journalist, therefore writes article on deliberately sabotaging a relationship) or natural (mans accepts bet to make a woman fall in love with him in 10 days because...the plot demands it, I guess!), and to be honest, this is the films biggest failing.
Any chemistry between the two leads is completely worthless, because the audience knows the entire thing is a sham. That said, there are a few laughs to be had here, and the adequate performances all round mean this isn't awful viewing by any means. Matthew McConaughey doesn't exactly break any new ground here, playing a smug, well-off everyman, but he does serve as a good foil for Kate Hudson, who delivers a performance that really tests the viewers patience. Yes, I realise the point is to be annoying to try and drive off the guy, but it doesn't exactly make for good viewing!
The supporting cast is what you'd expect, an array of mildly entertaining but decidedly two-dimensional characters whose sole purpose in life is to gravitate around the leads. The film-making and plot of the film are passable, nothing special but nothing awful either.
All in all, I would say this is by no means an awful film, and if it happens to be on and you've no other choice, it's worth wasting a couple of hours on. But it is incredibly average, and let down by a premise which makes you wonder if you even want a happy ending!