Ira and Abby

2006

Ira and Abby

Critics Consensus

Ira & Abby overcomes the somewhat clichéd plot with witty dialogue and earnest performances.

67%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 43

62%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 3,038
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Movie Info

Love at first sight has some interesting repercussions a few months down the line in this offbeat romantic comedy. Ira Black (Chris Messina) is a wildly neurotic thirtysomething who can't get his life in gear -- the son of a pair of therapists, Arlene (Judith Light) and Seymour (Robert Klein), Ira still hasn't finished his grad school dissertation, he's been in therapy for 12 years, and can't bring himself to settle down with his longtime girlfriend Lea (Maddie Corman). When both Lea and his analyst inform Ira that they don't want to see him anymore, he decides he needs to make some changes. Ira joins a health club, where he meets Abby Willoughby (Jennifer Westfeldt), who is supposed to sell memberships to the gym but is much better at listening to people's problems. The two discover they have a strong and immediate rapport, and Ira asks Abby to marry him only a few hours later. Abby says yes, and soon the couple are wed. However, it isn't until after they've been married for a few weeks that Ira discovers Abby has been divorced twice already, and it makes him very uneasy about their relationship. Despite more therapy, Ira asks Abby for a divorce, and it sends shock waves through their families -- Arlene begins having an affair with Michael (Fred Willard), Abby's free-spirited father, while Seymour commiserates with Abby's mother Lynne (Frances Conroy), and eventually parents and children are all meeting together in group therapy for couples. Ira and Abby was written by leading lady Jennifer Westfeldt, who was also screenwriter and star for the independent hit Kissing Jessica Stein. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Cast

Chris Messina
as Ira Black
Jennifer Westfeldt
as Abby Willoughby
Robert Klein
as Seymour Black
Jason Alexander
as Dr. Morris Saperstein
Fred Willard
as Michael Willoughby
Freddie Francis
as Bobby
Maddie Corman
as Lea
Brad Bellamy
as Henry
Marylouise Burke
as Janice
David Margulies
as Dr. Friedman
Frances Conroy
as Lynne Willoughby
Donna Murphy
as Dr. Goldman
Judith Light
as Arlene Black
Chris Parnell
as Dr. Silverberg
Darrell Hammond
as Dr. Rosenblum
Kali Rocha
as Tracey
Peter Hirsch
as Dr. Goldberg
Ilana Levine
as Dr. Finkelstein
Michael Patrick McGrath
as Tony
Kevin Sussman
as Lenny
Matthew Del Negro
as Seth
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News & Interviews for Ira and Abby

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Critic Reviews for Ira and Abby

All Critics (43) | Top Critics (16) | Fresh (29) | Rotten (14)

  • An odd love poem for cynics who have thrown sentimentality into the garbage.

    Feb 22, 2008 | Rating: B- | Full Review…

    Amy Nicholson

    I.E. Weekly
    Top Critic

  • The movie benefits from an exceptionally strong line-up of supporting characters beautifully played by a top-notch cast.

    Oct 18, 2007 | Rating: B

    Nell Minow

    Chicago Sun-Times
    Top Critic

  • Ira & Abby has plenty of sharp details, mostly verbal, and it gives old pros and newer faces a chance to show off their poker-faced comic wiles.

    Oct 18, 2007 | Rating: 3/4

    Michael Phillips

    Chicago Tribune
    Top Critic

  • Ira & Abby is like its characters: nice with a lot of problems.

    Oct 12, 2007 | Rating: 2/4 | Full Review…

    Wesley Morris

    Boston Globe
    Top Critic

  • It's sunny, oh-so-New-York and ever-so cute, and Messina and Westfeldt, under-used actors, are equally beguiling.

    Oct 11, 2007 | Rating: 4/5

    Roger Moore

    Orlando Sentinel
    Top Critic

  • Ira & Abby, in its breezy, low-key way, will make audiences happy -- something [director] Westfeldt already knows how to do.

    Oct 5, 2007 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…

    Moira MacDonald

    Seattle Times
    Top Critic
View All Critic Reviews (43)

Audience Reviews for Ira and Abby

  • Jul 29, 2012
    Another win for Jennifer Westfeldt. In disagreement with friend and Flixster reviewer, Jim Hunter, I think the group therapy session is the most amazing scene in the movie. So many overlapping arguments and grievances aired. I especially love Ira's line that criticizes Abby's penchant for people-pleasing, "It's hard being married to someone who's married to everyone."
    Alice S Super Reviewer
  • Jul 17, 2011
    Don't know how I missed or passed this one up..but it was simply hilarious. To me, Ira Black (Chris Messina) plays the part of the perfect neurotic "schlepper" in this movie.Ira was so bad in relationships that his own psychiatrist doesn't want to see him any more...after being with him for 12 years! He advises Ira to go out and find himself. As Ira neglectfully does so and meets Abby (Jennifer Westfeldt who is a rare gem in this film!), at a gym. They meet and greet but Abby has some amazing plans to do more than meet him....introduce him to her parents.The two wind up getting married so early that the penalties for not waiting are huge. This turned out to be so radically whimsically funny that everybody winds up in therapy!!! Please see this classic hysterical romance!
    Fascade F Super Reviewer
  • Jun 01, 2011
    A couple quickly falls in love and marries, and then they have to deal with the ramifications. This film is remarkably uneven. It is often jaunty and farcical, but there are moments of true pathos that demand we take the action more seriously than we had been prepared for. There is also great truth in the moments when, for example, Seymour says, "It's impossible to ever truly know anybody." But immediately after we get a ridiculous scene involving everybody's therapists and people carrying on ad infinitum. The primary eponymous story offers some fairly charming moments, but the supporting stories often have little to do with the main action and only distract from the people we want to care about. The performances by Chris Messina and Jennifer Westfeldt (especially Westfeldt) often make their outlandish characters believable, and by the end of the film, I wished I knew them better and got to spend more time in their presence. Overall, there's a lot to like about Ira and Abby, but not much to like about <i>Ira and Abby</i> because the film as whole suffers from too much business and not enough substance.
    Jim H Super Reviewer
  • Apr 28, 2011
    I'm at least glad to know that somebody is filling in for the psychoneurotic Jewish dilettante while Woody is off parading himself in Europe doing god-knows-what. This movie largely succeeds due to Jennifer Westfeldt, who plays Abby with such au naturale the role seems made for her. The supporting Jewish cast feels like a return home to my favorite genre in the world, so much that I'm willing to forgive Chris Messina for being such a complete jerk.
    Jennifer X Super Reviewer
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