Originally touted as a romantic comedy, “This Means War” was all that and a little bit more. It was clearly a ‘chick flick’ that provided laughs, romance, emotions and plenty of action, but it also made you realize the predicament one could get into if you don’t tell the truth from the beginning.

Lauren Scott (played by Reese Witherspoon) is an attractive executive responsible for conducting focus groups. Yet, she’s unlucky in love and is constantly reminded of this every time she runs into an ex-boyfriend of hers and his fiancée.

FDR Foster (played by Chris Pine) is a good-looking, charming, insensitive playboy who can pretty much get any woman he wants. The only long-lasting relationship FDR seems to have had is a bromance with his fellow co-worker.

Tuck Henson (played by Tom Hardy) is the other half of the bromance. He’s a sensitive, safe guy who seems like a pushover, but he gradually grows a backbone. Tuck has a son from a previous marriage and would like to spend more “family” time with his son and ex-wife, who seems uninterested.

The film focuses on FDR and Tuck’s close friendship. They are both highly skilled CIA agents and each profess themselves willing to take a bullet for one another, but when they realize they’re both dating the same woman, all bets are off and their bromance quickly goes awry. The woman at the center of the love triangle is Lauren Scott.

Since it has now become a competition to see which guy Lauren likes the best, FDR and Tuck use sophisticated technology to see what is happening with one another on each other’s date with her. They each conduct extensive background checks, they tape Lauren’s phone calls and use hidden surveillance cameras to track her every move, which is obviously illegal and immoral. At the same time, Lauren is totally clueless to all of this and the fact that FDR and Tuck are best friends, and CIA agents.

If trying to outdo one another wasn’t enough, FDR and Tuck are also attempting to do their job in trying to capture corrupt, German bad guy Heinrich (played by Til Schweiger) and bring him to justice. At the same time, Lauren is indecisive about her two suitors and thinks she may to resort to having sex with FDR and Tuck to figure out which one she likes the best. Well, there’s a word for a woman who dates two men at the same time, but should not be repeated here.

The performances in “This Means War” were a little lackluster. Reese Witherspoon, like in most of her films, plays the same character, the girl-next-door. Her role in this film was identical to the role she played in “How Do You Know.” Chris Pine was nice eye candy, but his character lacked depth and sensitivity. British actor Tom Hardy seemed like a fresh of breath air. Hardy’s role in this film personified what most women dream their future boyfriend or husband should be like, caring and sensitive.

The beginning of the film reminded me of why I’ve never been a fan of action movies. The film’s first scene had the two CIA agents, FDR and Tuck, on a mission in Hong Kong, attempting to thwart and shoot the bad guy, but then eventually the skyscraper landscapes of Los Angeles finished off the rest of the film. Also, many of the scenes looked as though they were moving along too rapidly when it came to issues between the main characters.

The film’s storyline, as with most romantic comedies, was predictable in which two friends—in this case, spy versus spy—compete for the affection of the same woman. Director McG, who’s best known for directing action movies like the “Charlie’s Angels” franchise, knew his place when it came to creating action-packed scenes, but was out of his element when it came to the romantic and comedic parts of the film. As for the movie’s soundtrack, it was upbeat and eclectic, but didn’t make much of an impact to the film.

“This Means War” lived up to its expectations as a ‘chick flick’ and the comedy and romance combo made it tolerable and worthwhile to see.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Romantic

Rated: PG-13 (for some sexual content including references, some violence and action, and for language), 97 minutes