It starts out rather predictably and formulaic: Ellen DeGeneres' voice over recounts the story of how she met Whitman (Bill Pullman) and ended up in a wedding dress whilst being detained in a Mexican prison (we've all been there). The thing is, the film goes for jokes that are inconsistent with the universe it has set up for us. You see, the film begins as a typical romantic-comedy crapfest, where all the "humor" comes from women complaining about how men suck and what have you. You know, the 90's-style stand-up comic junk.
Except, the thing is, with Mr. Wrong, the cutesy, hacky observational one-liners make Jerry Seinfeld look like Bill Hicks. You can hear the screenwriters smugly smiling themselves as each cringe-inducing line is delivered.
But then, suddenly, the humor shifts towards "wacky" and completely improbable gags and characters that are only "characters" in the most basic sense of the word. Just completely cartoonish and stupid. I'm looking at you, Joan Cusack, and you too, guy who played Bram on Lost.
Aside from the humor of the film, the structure is so twisted and contorted in an attempt to play "gotcha" on the audience that it never makes any sense. When the film introduces Whitman, he is suave, sophisticated, and soft-spoken. Then for no reason whatsoever, he finally decides to be "himself," which is when he starts getting zany and bombastic. Look, I get it. Sort of. I understand that it was a misdirection on behalf of the screenwriters, but it is a hacky, cheap attempt. Plus, we never learn anything about Whitman's character that explains his actions. Why does he feel compelled to pretend to act a certain way when meeting Ellen's character? Why did he leave Joan Cusack's character when she is so clearly perfect for him? Why in Flying Spaghetti Monster's good name is he attracted to Ellen DeGeneres? We're talking about a wealthy, attractive man who lives in San Diego, and he goes for Ellen?!
There's a million things wrong with this movie, and not a single thing right. First mistake: casting Ellen DeGeneres as a leading lady. Look, she was fine on TV or whatever. But who thought she could carry an entire film? She's not an actress, she's a comedian. She can't play anybody but herself.
What I suppose I'm getting at here is that Mr. Wrong isn't just a good example of the mediocrity of 90's mainstream cinema. It's also perfectly illustrative of the 90's as a whole. Idiotic, worthless, and better off to be forgotten by everyone involved.
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