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The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 19, 2008

THE LOVE GURU *½

Mike Myers plays Pitka, the world's second-best guru, who carries a chip on his shoulder from growing up in the shadow of top-seeded rival Deepak Chopra (who makes a brief appearance). He must learn to love himself when he falls for the Toronto Maple Leafs' owner (Jessica Alba) while counseling the team's lovesick star (Romany Malco), whose wife has run off with a rival goalie (Justin Timberlake).

Myers spent years honing his character and he's obviously having fun, his earnestness making some lines seem funnier than they are. But his zeal cannot save most of the empty jokes from landing with a deadly thud.

PG-13 (crude and sexual content, profanity, comic violence and drug references); 88 minutes

David Germain,

The Associated Press

THE FOOT FIST WAY **

Co-writer and star Danny McBride is strip-mall Tae Kwon Do instructor Fred Simmons, a black belt with a beer gut who teaches everyone from little kids to senior citizens.

There's something vaguely noble about the way he approaches the tenets of the martial art - self-control, courtesy, perseverance, integrity and indomitable spirit - or at least there's nobility in the way he talks about them.

In reality, he's a mess: His trashy, blond wife (Mary Jane Bostic) is sleeping around and the only way he can regain his confidence is to fight his idol, Chuck "The Truck" Wallace (co-writer Ben Best).

First-time director Jody Hill wrings several raunchy, deadpan laughs out of this premise. But the movie ultimately goes nowhere, and looks shoddy in a way that doesn't even have a kitschy appeal.

R (strong profanity and sexual content); 87 minutes

THE PROMOTION *½

The story of two assistant grocery store managers (Seann William Scott and John C. Reilly) competing for the same manager gig at a new Chicago location bounces awkwardly from light and jaunty to dryly deadpan and back again. As a result, "The Promotion" feels much longer than its brief running time and it often makes you so uncomfortable that you'll anxiously wish for it to end.

Director Steve Conrad, who also wrote the script, can't decide whether he wants us to like these guys or root against them. Jenna Fischer of "The Office" - which "The Promotion" strives to emulate - is squandered as the sweetly supportive wife of Scott's character, who's thoroughly mediocre but thinks he's "the leading shoo-in" for the job.

R (profanity, sexual references and drug use); 87 minutes

Christy Lemire,

The Associated Press

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