Original and surprisingly funny

Rating: 7/10 (17 June 2008)

I wasn't very interested in the film from the previews, but I won a free screening ticket and I'm glad I did! It takes a while to "get" the film but it's really a tremendous parody on the whole spiritual guru business.
Just like Austin Powers was really unseen before in its originality, The Love Guru takes an entirely new concept and manages to balance being goofy enough to be funny but just serious enough that you still care about the characters. Mike Myers takes turns being the strange one and being the straight man, which is good because the film doesn't turn into a farce as a result.
The plot had quite a few good twists and there's a surprise ending (two of them) that had me tearing a little at the end with laughter. My only objection might be that they made fun of dwarfs in a rude manner, and the film takes a while for you to understand what they're aiming for.
Ben Kingsley and Justin Timberlake win big big props for being willing to make fun of themselves on screen. Let's hope when they make Love Guru 2 they don't make the mistake they did with the Austin Powers films and make a cookie-cutter remake that parroted the first, killing off the creative.
Who should see this film:
-- everyone, but only if you like bathroom humor