The Dilemma grapples with that insider knowledge that leaves people in a state of flux. Seeing his best friend's wife cheating, Ronny Valentine (Vaughn) decides to assume the role of mediator. Geneva (Ryder), has been seeing someone on the side and it's eating Ronny up. He can't just sit back and let Nick's (James) marriage fall apart as the guy sweats it out night and day in an attempt to deliver the goods for a project that could make or break them.

Ronny's doing okay... trying to keep Nick motivated to get an authentic engine sound for the green-friendly line of muscle cars they've developed for Dodge to reintroduce a line of classic vehicles for the environment conscious individual. The corporate angle is enough of a joke for The Dilemma to focus on, but this one's more concerned with Ronny's conscience. Can he knowingly stand back and let Nick's marriage fall apart as their deadline looms, or will he have the fortitude to make right. This is The Dilemma.

Vince Vaughn stars as Ronny, Kevin James as Nick, Winona Ryder as Geneva, Jennifer Connelly as Beth, Ronny's love interest with Channing Tatum as the other guy. It's a star-studded cast, with Ron Howard signed on as director. However, this is a comedy and while Vince Vaughn, Kevin James and even Queen Latifah fit the bill as comic actors... the rest of the cast do not.

The film struggles with its balance between drama and comedy, making for a rather choppy, inconsistent viewing experience. The Dilemma feels like siamese twins wanting to rip apart. The comic contingent of the cast and comedy premise in little-guy-versus-big-corporation tug at the seams. Simultaneously, the dramatic component of the ensemble and renowned drama director compose a romance drama, which competes with the corporate comedy. While often entertaining with Vince Vaughn at the helm as a go-between, his charms require a sidekick, a villain or a Robin to help him out.

Vince Vaughn is funny, a natural leading man with a fun sense of charisma - but he doesn't quite pull it off. The supporting cast seem like distractions... and instead of being tangible characters, feel like after thoughts and plot devices. To heap even more coals on Vaughn's head, the script isn't there... not even for a spontaneous riff master like Vaughn, who can usually spice a tired script up.

The Dilemma has shades of The Break-Up, except the supporting cast combine to substitute for the secondary lead of Jennifer Aniston. The peripheral actors are good, but The Dilemma causes its own dilemma by sidelining their performances. Winona Ryder delivers a reasonable supporting role, the others aren't given enough screen time to establish themselves... even Queen Latifah's "ladywood" character is under-utilised or unnecessary. Perhaps there was just too much story to work through, or just too many stars to appease?

Either way... The Dilemma suffers for it. The line of thought and narrative progression is jarring at times with each premise campaigning for the pole position. Unfortunately, it just isn't funny enough to override the clutter. Vince Vaughn is a game saver, but with Kevin James instead of Jon Favreau, it's an uneasy comic pairing... and there's just not enough chemistry to carry the film. Ron Howard is an excellent director, but The Dilemma is just too far removed from A Beautiful Mind, Cinderella Man and Frost/Nixon.

The bottom line: Disappointing.