The Bounty Hunter (out 26 July 10, Cert. 12)

Jennifer Aniston, Gerard Butler, Christine Baranski, Jason Sudeikis, Cathy Moriarty, directed by Andy Tenant, 2010, cert. 12

Monkey Score: 48%

Investigating a story that seem to implicate the local police, reporter Nicole Hurley follows a lead instead of appearing in court for a traffic offence. Skipping bond, she becomes the newest charge of bounty hunter Milo Boyd. To make matters worse, Milo is Nicole's ex, and an ex-cop, too, friendly with some of the officers Nicole is checking on.


Pulling off action comedy demands not only solid acting, but also spot on direction and an iron-clad script. Add to this the chemistry between leads, without which the screen just cannot light up. Think Clooney/Lopez in Steven Soderbergh's Out Of Sight as a good example. In theory The Bounty Hunter looks promising, like a modern take on Midnight Run. Unfortunately, though, the film does not add up to much, let down by a formulaic script that just hits the bum notes. While Butler and Aniston are OK in their respective roles, one may wonder about their ability to gauge a worthwhile project. Andy Tennant (Hitch) directs what he can out of the material but even with decent performances there's only so much one can get out of a paint-by-numbers story. The overall result is a lacklustre and rather boring. In the end The Bounty Hunter misses the point by being neither funny nor romantic.