THE LOVE GURU

Director: Marco Schnabel

Stars: Mike Myers, Jessica Alba, Justin Timberlake, Romany Malco, Manu Narayan, Verne Troyer

Year: 2008

Rating: PG-13

Wow, I'm in the minority on this one, but I thought this film had some truly funny, off-the-wall moments that made me laugh out loud. Mike Myers' widely-panned 2008 release is definitely a flawed film - crude, lame in parts, and (in the last half, especially) not particularly funny ... but I can't just totally pan the entire film - or Myers' latest creation, Guru Pitka.

Myers stars as a non-Indian brought up his entire life in India, his spiritual teachings bestowed on him by classmate Deepak Chopra - who, of course, has grown up to be a hugely famous relationship and self-help expert all over the world ... in this country, in particular, after Chopra appeared on Oprah Winfrey's chat show. Pitka, growing up in Chopra's shadow, has always been #2 in the guru business, and as the film opens he's become a very popular "love guru" in Los Angeles, where he lives in his ashram with his faithful servant and sidekick Rajneesh (delightfully and energetically played by Manu Narayan, in one of the best performances in the film) and hires himself out to cure relationships gone bad.

Enter the Toronto Maple Leafs, the professional ice hockey team that's currently owned by Jane Bullard (woodenly and boringly played by Jessica Alba, in hands-down the worst performance of the film). The Bullard family has owned the Leafs for years, and seems to be jinxed because the Leafs have had nothing but bad luck - since Jane took over, especially - but in recent weeks all that was changing because of the Leafs' star player, Darren Roanoke (Romany Malco). But when Roanoke and his wife Prudence (Meagan Good) suddenly split up, and Prudence begins seeing a rival hockey player, Frenchman Jacques "Le Coq" Grande (Justin Timberlake, proving he's got big-time talent as both actor and comedian) Roanoke suddenly goes way, WAY off his game ... and Jane - much against the wishes of Maple Leafs coach Punch Cherkov (Verne Troyer) - hires Guru Pitka to get Darren and Prudence back together in time for the Leafs to win the Stanley Cup. The job appeals to Pitka, as well, in a huge way as well - it's his one shot at finding real fame, getting on "Oprah" himself, and finally beating out Deepak Chopra as the #1 spiritual guru of the world.

It's a silly premise, but you'd expect nothing less than that from Mike Myers. The opening credits and first couple of sequences have a few laugh-out-loud funny moments, and for me Myers set up something fairly charming in the character of Guru Pitka. Myers, on the extras, claims to have a real love for eastern philosophy and practices (as well as the Toronto Maple Leafs) - and it shows here, as in between all the humor and stretches of believability, Guru Pitka's methods and teachings are from the heart. The insult humor, particularly the short jokes aimed unsparingly at Verne Troyer, may grow a little tired after awhile, but a few of them actually come off fresh and funny. And with the exception of Alba, who never seems to fully connect with the rest of the cast on a believable level, all the actors involved do a great job (although whoever told Jim Gaffigan that he was anything less than annoying should be pimp-slapped). Even Telma Hopkins, in a supporting role as Darren Roanoke's stern mother, does a great job.

But the movie ultimately lags in the last third, as the humor becomes a bit too crude and the story a little too smarmy. While the movie's loose ends tie up satisfactorily, what happens can be seen coming a mile away, and only a really awesome Bollywood film song and dance number at the end brought a real smile.

But overall, not as bad a film as most reviewers would make you believe. It's not total crap, and the first third of the film (which includes some great cameos, and may have you chanting "Mariska Hargitay" yourself!). But it isn't Myers' best work, for sure. **1/2 - Reel Mediocre-Reel Cool