Friends With Benefits
A sharp, zingy comedy with two stars who are totally at ease with the material. Kunis and Timberlake strike up an instantly believable relationship and the chemistry pulses from the screen. It's this generation's 'When Harry met Sally', and then some.
The hype...
Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis offer up their version of a no strings attached relationship comedy. Rumours of off-set dalliances between the pair have been rife, as has the wall of publicity surrounding the release of the film. Looks to be edgier, and hopefully funnier, than the similarly themed Natalie Portman/Ashton Kutcher vehicle from earlier in the year.
The story...
A high profile magazine in New York needs a new editor, and the woman tasked with finding the right man is headhunter Jamie (Mila Kunis). Over in Los Angeles, online editor Dylan (Justin Timberlake) is recruited, and when he arrives the pair strike up a friendship.
They've both just been through messy break-ups, and decide to set one another up with dates. Soon, the blindingly obvious strikes them: if it's a casual, no-commitment, physical relationship they are both after, why not find it with each other?
And so Jamie and Dylan maintain the façade of friendship as genuine feelings slowly gestate. But how long will it before they realise what everyone else around them can already see?
The breakdown...
We could well be in the midst of a golden age of Hollywood comedy, has there been a better year in recent memory? 'Bridesmaids' kicked things off and we will soon be getting 'Crazy Stupid Love' and 'The Change-Up', both of which are very enjoyable indeed. However, 'Friends With Benefits' is the best of the bunch.
Kunis and Timberlake fit perfectly together, sparks fly as soon as they meet. But what really makes the film work is that the energy and humour is kept ticking over even when they are apart.
Kunis has a bizarre relationship with her flouncy mother that's full of offbeat laughs that come out of the blue. Timberlake's confidante Woody Harrelson is a more traditional source of mirth, but very enjoyable all the same.
Things shift up a gear when Dylan and Jamie go off and meet his family. It is utterly predictable but it is also totally watchable and virtually impossible to dislike.
The film belongs to the leads though, and in Mila Kunis we may well have found the new Julia Roberts or Meg Ryan.
The only real flaw in the film, and admittedly this is pedantic, is that it's not really a film about 'friends with benefits'. Jamie and Dylan meet when he arrives to a new city, so it's not like they're long-term friends, and they are instantly (and understandably) attracted to one another. Then they essentially have a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship.
The flip side is that rather than getting stuck on the mechanics of how it would work out practically, we get to watch a fantastic romantic comedy with emotions we can all identify with, even if we don't all look like the impossibly attractive stars.
The verdict...
Full of laughs and clever observations, 'Friends with Benefits' also has two leads who look and sound like the perfect modern couple. It has a predictable ending, but it's one the audience will be rooting for thanks to the great performances and charm of Kunis and Timberlake.
Rating: 4.5/5
'Friends with Benefits' is due to be released in the UK on 9 September. Certificate: 15.
