Have ya’ll seen Bored to Death, which stars Jason Schwartzman, Ted Danson and Zach Galifianakis? Yeah? It’s pretty funny. After watching How to Lose Friends and Alienate People, though, it’d be easy to feel cheated if one’s enjoyed the aforementioned television show.

The two efforts aren’t exactly the same. But there are a great many similarities. Either way, the movie, which was released a year prior to the show making it onto TV and based on the writing of a journalist, is probably just as entertaining as the cable show.

How to… begins with a start-up, politically and philosophically entrenched clutch of English writers fighting about some nonsense regarding the magazine they write for when the publisher and editor finds himself hired away. It doesn’t take too much to ‘sell out,’ just a good offer.

Upon Sidney Young’s arrival in the Big Apple, he’s promptly met with the reality that, despite his new gig, he’s still relatively low down on the ladder up to success. It’s not news that he’s particularly pleased with, nor does the realization turn Young into a hard worker. His first day, he goes so far as to insult a gallery owner with his lack of who’s who knowledge – probably not a difficult thing to do. But one would have thought that Brit accent would have taken him a bit further.

Young, though, intends to retain his scruples and turns down an exploitative offer to pen an interview with some up and coming director whom the writer already despises – what sours the deal, though, is the fact that the piece necessitates its writer to come up with a fluffy angle.

There’s a good deal of jockeying for position. But Young seems more intent on throwing himself at various vixens then angling at success. To a certain degree, it seems as if he expects fame and fortune to fall into his lap. He’s not too far off.

After Young’s falling out with just about everyone – including the Kirsten Dunst character, who every viewer should have pegged for the main love interest at the beginning of the film – he decides to do what’s best for his career, not his morale.

Thus begins Young’s descent into mindless idiocy. Of course, mindless idiocy comes replete with half naked bimbos, one night stands and conversation with various well known, public figures.

In a film so intent on rendering celebrity and its accoutrements in the most negative light, How to… ends in a suspect manner. But it’s amusing to get to its conclusion even if guessing at the outcome wasn’t too hard.