Charles Dickens' classic "A Christmas Carol" has been filmed and staged so often that the story is universally familiar. In short: As a result of tri-partite hauntings a surly miser is converted into a paragon of virtue.
"Ghosts of Girlfriends Past", in a sense, has also been filmed and staged so often that the story is universally familiar. In short: As a result of finally meeting the right woman a hopeless frog is transformed into Prince Charming.
The difference, in this case, is that both stories have been combined.
Since his career-making role in "Dazed and Confused", Matthew McConaughey has grinned and drawled his way through numerous boy/man roles. And Connor Mead is no different. A fashion photographer as famous for his work as he is for his philandering, Connor disdains the concept of love and (actively) advocates the joys of meaningless sex. After establishing his credentials as a cynical Lothario during his younger brother's wedding weekend, he is forced to take a hard look at his life by the standard set of ghosts who take him through his checkered romantic history and potential future. During the journey he learns that **spoiler alert** love is the answer.
Clearly having fun with the clichéd story, co-writers Jon Lucas and Scott Moore manage to inject some unexpectedly good laughs into their screenplay (the conference call multiple break-up stands out). Unfortunately, as with their recent effort "
Four Christmases", they also waste a lot of their onscreen talent. McConaughey is consistently given good material, but his co-star Jennifer Garner, playing the childhood sweetheart for whom he has been pining all of his life, is given little to do but wait for his revelation. She sheds a few tears, throws a few barbs and flashes her radiant smile - all very fetchingly - but is given little definition that might make her different from the other nameless women that Connor has bedded over the years. Robert Forster, as the retired Marine father of the bride, isn't given enough time to quite nail the R. Lee Ermey caricature that he is going for, and Anne Archer (looking like five pounds of face stretched over a ten-pound skull) serves no purpose at all. It's also a shame to see Breckin Meyer ("Road Trip"), with his proven comic chops, relegated to the role of Connor's milquetoast younger brother, with not so much as a single funny line.
The exception that makes the rule, though, is Michael Douglas, smarming his way through the role of Connor's mentor in the ways of the pick-up. Billed as the original player (he coined the term 'MILF', no less), he is consistently hilarious and the too infrequent scenes with him and McConaughey are definitely the highlights of the film. After a long career of serious roles, it's nice to see Douglas stretching his comic wings.
Director Mark Waters ("Mean Girls") also deserves commendation for keeping things moving along at a decent clip. With a running time of 1:55, this film could (and should) have dragged, but instead felt much shorter, which is no mean accomplishment. While flawed and ultimately forgettable, "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" is an enjoyable enough romantic comedy, delivering a little bit of message, a few moist eyes, and plenty of laughs.
