Russell Crowe isn't taking criticism of his romance with his "Proof of Life" costar Meg Ryan lying down. The film's director, Taylor Hackford, while promoting the picture in London last week, said at a press conference for the film that the real-life affair of his stars overshadowed the story on screen and resulted in the film's less-than-stellar U.S. box office showing. (Ryan, 38, ended her nine-year marriage to actor Dennis Quaid before the film premiered in America last Christmas. She and Crowe, 37, went their separate ways earlier this year, after reportedly being together for six months.) In Melbourne, Australia, Oscar nominee Crowe (who is up for his performance in "Gladiator") told reporters of Hackford's remarks, "I think Taylor is being impolite, impolitic and imbecilic by saying that . . . What we know, personally, is that we put as much effort into the process as possible and are pleased with the outcome."