Friends With Benefits is the sort of movie that points out all the flaws in conventional romantic comedy without ever attempting to fix any of them. The frequent jokes about the sorry state of romantic comedy only serve to rub salt in the viewer’s wounds, reminding them of how bad this movie is. And what a bad film it is. Conventional in every sense, including the story format, wacky side characters, and lazy script, this film is an assault on the viewer. This is made even worse by attempts at relevance (mentions of flash mobs, sexting, etc.) that just make it seem like the writers are a couple of old men completely out of touch with “hip” culture. Both leads give strong performances, and several great actors appear in supporting roles (Woody Harrelson, Jason Segel), but it’s nowhere near enough to redeem this bland and horrible movie.
1.5 out of 5 stars
Jason Haskins, Head Writer-
Jason Haskins, Head Writer-
If you're looking for a forgettable, cliched, painfully contrived, and also painfully cute (at times) movie starring two hotties--Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis--look no further than 2011's Friends with Benefits. Timberlake moves to New York City from Los Angeles, befriends a headhunter (Kunis), and the duo decide to strictly have sex without the emotion or commitment of a relationship. We all know how this ends and it's strangely familiar if you've ever seen any of the advertisements from that No Strings Attached movie released a few months ago. The best way to describe this movie is that it's a shallow and trite romantic comedy so aware of its place in cinema (after Nora Ephron, Rob Reiner, and others' attempts at the genre) with constant reminders and satirical statements of what it's trying to do. The screenplay was a joke with characters that you don't care about and scenarios that are very stupid and predictable. Surprisingly enough, the flick was pretty vulgar, which I enjoyed, but it certainly can't save it from all the smugness as if trying to choke you with its cleverness that's not all that clever--sort of like a joke that's beaten over your head too maliciously. Kunis and Timberlake have good chemistry, Timberlake is charming and fun, but ultimately the movie was a bore and offered no real intriguing bits. I may be one of the few people on Cinemecca that have a soft spot occasionally for romantic movies, but the romance aspect was plain awful because of how tired the whole concept is. Friends With Benefits is clearly a movie for girls who want to see tons of Timberlake in his underwear exposing his bod (and buttocks!), but male viewers will have to grin and bear the failed attempts at humor and jerky romantic angles. This is best suited as a forgettable date movie--sorry, guys.
1.5 out of 5 Stars
Terry Cleveland, Staff Writer -
Terry Cleveland, Staff Writer -
Friends With Benefits is a romantic comedy looking for something new, but instead it trips on itself and falls flat on its face into a wet steaming pile of clichés.
Friends with benefits is about two people, Dylan (Justin Timberlake) a progressive blogger from L.A. who comes to New York to meet a headhunter named Jamie (Mila Kunis) about an editing job with GQ. Dylan lands the job and him and Jamie soon become best friends and eventually lovers, but without the complications of dating, hence “friends with benefits”.
I won’t deny that going into this movie I wasn’t expecting much. However, I was surprised to find that it was slightly better than I had hoped. The witty one liners and raunchy sexual antics are well written and at times actually funny, including a tongue in cheek discussion of the conventional rom com stereotypes. Unfortunately the wit ends up taking so much of the screen time that there was almost no real character development whatsoever. Its not until a little more than half way through though that the inevitable vomit inducing clichés start to seep out of every aspect of the film. The clichés ruin all that is left of the movie and rob all the clever charm that was contained in the first half of the film.
Bottom line: Don’t waste your money or your time.
2.5 out 5
Sam Newsom, Staff Writer -
Sam Newsom, Staff Writer -
I took 3 Cialis waiting in the early screening line, 45 minutes before the film started. My hard-on raged visibly through the previews and opening credit montage, but not 10 minutes into the film I began to go flacid. Somewhere between the blue-ball-induced haze of agony and the backasswards "ironies" and resulting comedic sluttiness that "Friends with Benefits" thought it could get away with, I passed out.
I don't know how long I was out, but when I came to my vision was blurry and I had a half-chub; I heard things like, "Just shit on my face", "Twat Block" and a variety of chuckle worthy dick puns spoken from the harkening voice of Woody Harrelson, all floating formlessly through the production; things were looking up until JT and Mila Kunis began discussing high culture, zen philosophy and how sleazy and obvious Romcoms have gotten and how easy and unsatisfying they are, like friends with benifi...wait, that's not right. In the critical, catalytic scene before they start to fuck, they are watching a shit Romcom and acting like it has worth and the audience laughed like it was a joke (because it is?); sharp pain gripped my left side and my breathing quickened; I passed out again.
"While trying to avoid the clichés of Hollywood romantic comedies, Dylan (Timberlake) and Jamie (Kunis) soon discover however that adding the act of sex to their friendship does lead to complications," is exactly what IMDB said would make taking 3 Cialis worth it, but I quickly realized (four pass-outs deep) that "avoiding Hollywood cliche's" was code for ""avoiding Hollywood cliche's"", and even slier code for "we're going to point them all out, say 'fuck' a couple times and then slap the audience in the face with the enormously cliche phantom dick that we just told them isn't there". I emerged from the film as flaccid as the day I was born, knowing nothing more of the world.
2/11: Raunchy witticism
5/9: Offensive, self-aware "Romcom" bashing/flaunting
1/3: Trying to keep my erection
I don't know how long I was out, but when I came to my vision was blurry and I had a half-chub; I heard things like, "Just shit on my face", "Twat Block" and a variety of chuckle worthy dick puns spoken from the harkening voice of Woody Harrelson, all floating formlessly through the production; things were looking up until JT and Mila Kunis began discussing high culture, zen philosophy and how sleazy and obvious Romcoms have gotten and how easy and unsatisfying they are, like friends with benifi...wait, that's not right. In the critical, catalytic scene before they start to fuck, they are watching a shit Romcom and acting like it has worth and the audience laughed like it was a joke (because it is?); sharp pain gripped my left side and my breathing quickened; I passed out again.
"While trying to avoid the clichés of Hollywood romantic comedies, Dylan (Timberlake) and Jamie (Kunis) soon discover however that adding the act of sex to their friendship does lead to complications," is exactly what IMDB said would make taking 3 Cialis worth it, but I quickly realized (four pass-outs deep) that "avoiding Hollywood cliche's" was code for ""avoiding Hollywood cliche's"", and even slier code for "we're going to point them all out, say 'fuck' a couple times and then slap the audience in the face with the enormously cliche phantom dick that we just told them isn't there". I emerged from the film as flaccid as the day I was born, knowing nothing more of the world.
2/11: Raunchy witticism
5/9: Offensive, self-aware "Romcom" bashing/flaunting
1/3: Trying to keep my erection
Overall 2 out of 5
© Cinemecca, 2011
© Cinemecca, 2011
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