FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS

Friends With No Strings 

Review by: Jade

When I got the screening invite to Friends with Benefits – the new romantic comedy starring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis – I called James to see if he was going to do this review.

Jade: Are you going to the screening of Friends with Benefits?

James: I’ve already seen it. I watched it on the plane.

Jade: What did you think? Was it good?

James: I could only watch the first 20 minutes. Then I turned it off.

Jade: I’m really surprised it’s on planes already? It’s not released in cinemas for another month and a half.

It turns out James was talking about No Strings Attached – another romantic comedy starring Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman.

So off I went to the screening with my buddy Mel in tow. Why? Because she had seen No Strings Attached and I needed a cheat sheet to see how similar Friends with Benefits was to No Strings Attached. Some people have commented it is the same film. And if I’m really honest, I just wanted to evaluate how vague James is (I know, I know. Mila and Natalie were both in Black Swan. Mila and Ashton were both in That 70’s Show. It’s not hard to get it all confused). 

Friends with Benefits is the story of… well friends with benefits. Sexual benefits. Jamie (Mila Kunis) is a corporate head-hunter who recruits Dylan (Justin Timberlake) to New York to take a job at GQ magazine. Of course Dylan knows no one in New York. So of course Dylan and Jamie become friends. And of course they take a stab at that whole mythical idea of being friends who have sex without commitment or complication. Sound like another Hollywood rom-com? Kinda.

The opening scene stars brief appearances from Andy Samberg and Emma Stone who play Jamie and Dylan’s ex-partners respectively. So the first 5 minutes of the film set my expectations high. I LOVE this cast!

MILA – Hot! And her Awards season wardrobe was KILLER this year. And she dated Macauly Culkin.

JT – He dated Britney, ditched a great music career to star in Facebook and then bought into myspace? Random!

ANDY – THE LONELY ISLAND!!!

EMMA – What hot blonde goes back to being a ranga? That’s pretty cool. And she’s just such a spunk.

I have to admit I was fairly distracted throughout the film and can’t really remember a lot about it (note to self: write review after seeing the film, not 4 weeks later).

TOP 5 DISTRACTIONS DURING FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS

1. Richard Wilkins had his shoes off and his feet on the seat – which just so happened to be near my head. It was thoroughly disgusting. I think I may have spewed in my own mouth.
2. Jamie & Dylan go to Café Habana which is one of the many restaurants James, Mel and I have occupied in NYC together. OMG the corn there is SO good. SO good. It’s unbeatable. In fact I started thinking about all the corn I’ve tried in Australia recently. The Norfolk (shit), MsG’s (ok), Mama Sita (pretty good) – but none of them stack up to Café Habana by a long shot. I’m hungry now. I can’t wait to meet James for KFC after this. God, am I really going to eat chicken though? I’m vego. But KFC is hardly chicken is it. Ok I think I will have a burger. Or maybe a drumstick. I wish there was frozen coke here.
3. What ever happened to JT’s music career? Man, the I Think She Knows interlude after Lovestoned is so good. 3.28 is the magic number I use to jump to just to hear my favourite part. I should listen to that when I get home. Oh that’s right, I let my ex keep all my CDs and records http://youtu.be/QUuKvHHt8Sk
4. Is Jenna Elfman still a scientologist? And is she still friends with Kate Cebrano? Yumi and I use to talk about joining Scientology. We were mildly obsessed.
5. James. I wonder how similar this film actually is to No Strings Attached. And how James is so NOT my friend with benefits – that’s not entirely true. He helped me move house. And most importantly he was my wingman when I met my fiancé. He flew to Melbourne with me and went to some random festival where we knew no one just so I could tune some guy. Now that’s my idea of a real friend with benefits.

Ok back to the movie. Sorry!

Despite being a fairly traditional rom-com plot, there are elements of the film that set it apart and allow it to be more than just another rom-com. The dialogue starts off witty, funny and smart. They even make stabs at rom-coms and Katherine Heigl. There’s spunk and sass and the characters are confident and brash. It doesn’t seem as clichéd as you would expect from a rom-com.

The casting is exceptional. Patricia Clarkson (who played Emma Stone’s mother in Easy A) plays Jamie’s mother. Jenna Elfman plays Dylan’s sister. And Woody Harrelson plays Tommy, the gay sportswriter at GQ who probably wants to be Dylan’s friend with benefits too. Woody does not disappoint. He’s hilarious and lovable. And pro snowboarder Shaun White shows that some sport stars actually can act (not like Tony Hawk who starred in a film I worked on once – bless him, he can skate like a demon and run a business worth billions, but acting just ain’t his bag). Shaun is surprisingly very good though.

Ultimately this is a couple trying to defy the clichés of a Hollywood romantic comedy. They think they can do a casual sexual relationship with no emotional attachment. And hey, they wouldn’t be the first. But the sad thing is, they do end up being the Hollywood cliché. Which means the film does too. And Jamie, who starts out as an empowered, strong, funny, independent woman suddenly becomes another crazy, needy, psycho. Nooooo Mila, I love you!

At the end of the day, I love a good rom-com… on a plane. And this is one I would happily watch and enjoy while eating my vegetarian meal that makes me bloated and constipated and has no chocolate or cake (vego does not mean I want an apple for dessert!). It’s not amazing. It’s nothing new. But it’s not terrible and it’s easy to watch.

It turns out Mel didn’t think Friends with Benefits was that similar to No Strings Attached. Although the ending may be the same, the plot is slightly different. Mel rated No Strings Attached as the funnier film and reckons Ashton Kutcher is a better actor than JT. But James turned it off 20 minutes in? But he also told me it was Friends With Benefits?

I guess James is somewhat vague.

3 STARS

SYNOPSIS: Friends take a shot at casual sex with no emotional attachment

WHO SHOULD SEE IT: Those flying, rom-com fans, Medynski, those who enjoyed No Strings Attached

RELEASE DATE: In cinemas today