Couples Retreat (DVD)

Imagine a brand new 2010 Lamborghini Murcielago being driven down the freeway at a whopping 20 mph pace. Now imagine you are stuck riding shotgun. That is the same feeling one gets when watching Couples Retreat. On paper, the movie features one of the funniest ensembles of actors around. Vince Vaughn, Jason Bateman, Jon Favreau, Kristin Davis, and Faison Love all fill out major roles in this film. The film itself is a bit of a dud, with some potentially funny situations that never really turn out to be very funny at all.

The premise follows four couples as they take a vacation together on a tropical island paradise. Little do they know that they have signed up for a rigorous agenda filled with couple building activities designed to strengthen their relationships. The film never really gets off the ground, as all of the humor seems to be recycled from the actors’ funnier projects.

It is straining to continue writing this review as I don’t really want to go on thinking much more about this movie, I simply want to get on with my life. I just felt that I should warn people about this film so that they would not have had to suffer as I have.

Four Christmases (Theaters)

Four Christmases was such a huge disappointment for me I’m not even sure where to begin. I had actually expected a decent film based on its strong cast and the trailers released over the course of the year but unfortunately for me, this film did not live up to my expectations.

Now the film wasn’t horrible to say the least, but there was absolutely nothing that stood out for me. The comedic value was mediocre and I never felt any chemistry between co-stars Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon. During the Christmas season, these types of films should help prepare you by getting you into the holiday spirit, but this film seemed to forget it was a Christmas movie altogether. There was absolutely nothing “spirited” about it. The film seemed to focus more on vulgarity and sexual references to get by rather than sharing any real gifts of Christmas to its audience.

Personally, I would recommend that you skip this film this holiday season and wait for its release on DVD. It does have its moments but its definitely not worth the price of admission.

synopsis:

When upscale, happily unmarried San Francisco couple Kate and Brad find themselves socked in by fog on Christmas morning, their exotic vacation plans morph into the family-centric holiday they had, until now, gleefully avoided. Out of obligation–and unable to escape–they trudge to not one, not two, but four relative-choked festivities, increasingly mortified to find childhood fears raised, adolescent wounds reopen…and their very future together uncertain. As Brad counts the hours to when he can get away from their parents, step-parents, siblings and an assortment of nieces and nephews, Kate is starting to hear the ticking of a different kind of clock. And by the end of the day, she is beginning to wonder if their crazy families’ choices are not so crazy after all.