Couples Retreat

Released: 2009
MPAA rating: PG-13
Run-time: 1:53

“Couples Retreat” did not fare well both critically and at the box office, which was somewhat surprising to me considering the talent involved.  When I saw that Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau were involved in the writing, I was even more confused as they usually work very well together.  So, having seen it, am I still confused?  Well, no.  For a movie with so much talent behind it, the humor was so pedestrian and predictable.  The movie did have some funny, entertaining moments (Shark scene and Yoga scene) come to mind, but so many of the jokes were “been there, done that” (Married couples with kids never have sex, large black man has a large…well, you get it).  For the people who made “Swingers”, you just hope for so much better.  The basic storyline involves four couples who are long-time friends.  When Jason (Jason Bateman) and Cynthia (Kristen Bell) find themselves at a crossroads in their marriage, they find there is a place for couples having trouble to assess their compatibility while having some fun in the sun.  Despite  the other couples having no problems at all in their marriages, Jason and Cynthia convince them to join the couple, mostly to get a group rate on the program.  Once they arrive, they find there is plenty of sun, but not so much fun as they are required to participate in group activities so each couple can solve their problems.  This is where all the funny is supposed to be, but as I mentioned earlier, too many of the jokes have been done before…many times over.  The movie was not nearly as bad as I feared.  You sort of get what you expect from Vince Vaughn and the others, but it fell short of the mark.  It was far from awful, but I can’t go so far as recommending it, either.  Vaughn and Bateman fans will like it, so if you are in those categories, you can check it out.

Grade: C-


Trailer: