Something about this movie really bothered me. At first, I couldn't figure out just what it was, since I've seen LOTS of movies about affairs, and they don't usually bother me like this—plus I already knew this one was supposed to have a "happy ending" where (although tempted), he did NOT wind up having an affair.

While the husband didn't have sexual intercourse with the other woman, the actions portrayed in the movie would definitely meet my definition of "an affair." For instance, he went so far as to take off the woman's panties and begin to remove his own clothes before finally "coming to his senses." (Frankly, if a man gets that far, the chances of him stopping like this are between slim and none.)

However, I think the main problem I had with the movie was the juxtaposition of lots of silly humor with lots of serious events with serious ramifications. Movies about affairs that are all comic or all serious are fine, but this weird mixture of the ridiculous scenes alongside more realistic ones was just unsettling.

For instance, throughout the movie there was a running focus on a problem common to many couples with young children: not having sex. However, the movie resorted to a gross sequence about him taking Viagra and having an erection for over 4 hours, leading to a ludicrous scene of him going to the hospital in an ambulance and having an injection in the penis to alleviate the potential serious side effects.

Also, there was a very serious scene where the wife was distraught (when he was gone for 5 hours one night) and frantically searched his clothes and papers, looking for indications as to whether he was having an affair. This was very realistic. But then at the end of the movie—in the "coming together" scene—they connected by singing their dialogue to each other. (This was totally unrealistic.)

Another thing that bothered me was the way it supposedly came to a "happy ending"—despite the fact that he maintained complete secrecy about all that had transpired between him and the other woman over an extended period of time. The secrecy (and the deception) involved in hiding this kind of outside relationship creates a very serious breach in the essential connection between spouses, regardless of whether or to what extent there was sexual contact.

So basically, while the movie seemed to be trying to make a positive statement about the possibilities of maintaining a marital commitment, it wound up sending all the wrong messages.