The Break-Up

The Break-Up follows Gary Grobowski and Brooke Meyers, a Chicago couple whose relationship ends after a dispute over something as ordinary as dishes left unwashed following a family dinner. The argument exposes deeper tensions between two people with different expectations of partnership, and the split becomes final. What keeps them together is their apartment, which neither is willing to leave.

Since both refuse to move out, they settle into an arrangement as hostile roommates. Each tries to wear the other down: dividing the space between them, drawing friends and relatives into the conflict, and resorting to tactics meant to make staying unbearable. Peyton Reed directed the film, which sits between Down with Love and Yes Man in his filmography. Jeremy Garelick and Jay Lavender wrote the screenplay, and Vince Vaughn produced alongside Scott Stuber.

Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston play Gary and Brooke, with Joey Lauren Adams, Cole Hauser, Jon Favreau and Jason Bateman among the supporting cast. Made for about 52 million dollars, the film took roughly 206 million dollars worldwide, a strong return relative to its cost. Audience scores are moderate: 5.8 out of 10 on IMDb from around 145,000 votes, and 5.9 out of 10 on TMDB from about 2,900 votes. A film critics' rating of 5.4 out of 10 from 193 reviews places critical and audience views in similar territory, all suggesting a middling reception rather than enthusiasm.