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The most helpful favorable review
The most helpful critical review
49 of 62 people found the following review helpful:
Coming to the defence of this film that critics rated as a "C"
I had been wanting to see this movie for a long time and finally went to see it two nights ago. After reading some of the bad reviews, the critics rating the movie a "C" and only 2 stars from [...], I was a bit skeptical. I forgot about the ratings and decided to see the movie anyway.
I laughed throughout the whole movie, as well as the audience. There were...
Published 7 months ago by Lyric
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Did you see the trailer? If so, you saw most of the good parts.
Directed by Peter Billingsley (Ralphie, Christmas Story), Couples Retreat is essentially a reason for Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau to take a vacation to a tropical paradise. Along the way they decided to make a movie. Conveniently enough, the movie is about friends and their spouses taking a vacation.
When PowerPoint Ranger Jason (Jason Bateman) and his...
Published 4 months ago by Jason
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49 of 62 people found the following review helpful:
Coming to the defence of this film that critics rated as a "C", January 17, 2010
I had been wanting to see this movie for a long time and finally went to see it two nights ago. After reading some of the bad reviews, the critics rating the movie a "C" and only 2 stars from [...], I was a bit skeptical. I forgot about the ratings and decided to see the movie anyway.
I laughed throughout the whole movie, as well as the audience. There were younger people (early 20's), 30's - 40's, as well as a couple who were around the age of 60 in the audience. The elderly couple was sitting in front of me and as far as I could tell, they had a blast.
Despite the reviews of the critics and some viewers, I enjoyed this movie. I don't want to give any of the movie away but it's a laid back, hilarious story of one couple needing to work on their marriage and three other couples that wind up in the middle of all the chaos. There are different struggles and adventures that happen throughout the movie. As a poster had previously stated, it shows how different men and women truly are. This film also shows real life situations and things that come up in relationships and marriages often these days. Even though it's a "funny film", there are a few aspects of the movie that had the audience "aww'ing" but then belching out with screams and laughter right after.
If you've been wanting to see this movie, are a Vince Vaughn fan, or just need a good comedy (yes men, don't worry, I'm sure you'll laugh at the movie just as much, if not more) - I would definitely recommend this film.
This is NOT recommended to watch with children in the room nor taking them to the movie theater to see it with you.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
watch it if you don't have anything better to do, but it will be precious time lost!, July 23, 2010
You can glimpse the plot of the movie from the title, it is exactly what it says, only completely lame with over-the-hill actors getting richer while wasting our money! I wonder why some people think empty acting can be funny. What happened to smart jokes, even silly jokes that will leave you breathless? Having Vince Vaughn in this movie is a total insult to him; another example how having funny people in a stupid movie doesn't make it funnier!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Did you see the trailer? If so, you saw most of the good parts., April 27, 2010
Directed by Peter Billingsley (Ralphie, Christmas Story), Couples Retreat is essentially a reason for Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau to take a vacation to a tropical paradise. Along the way they decided to make a movie. Conveniently enough, the movie is about friends and their spouses taking a vacation.
When PowerPoint Ranger Jason (Jason Bateman) and his wife Ronnie (Malin Akerman) start to have problems in their relationship - most likely brought on by their OCD and obsession with slideshows - they drag fellow couples Dave (Vince Vaughn) and Cynthia (Kristen Bell), Joey (Jon Favreau) and Lucy (Kristin Davis), & Shane (Faizon Love) and his new fling to Eden, a vacation hot-spot for couples-building that looks like a screen saver, with promises of jet-skiing and beachside alcoholic drinks. Unfortunately for them, they are going to Eden West, a place for married couples to get new-age counseling with team-building, psychiatry, trust exercises and oddball philosophy involving early awakenings and shark adventures. What it's lacking, however, is fun; it's lacking Eden East, the singles side of the island. As contrived and predictable as this is, you already know where this is going.
Missing the "are you for scuba"-vibe from Along Came Polly, I spent the majority of the movie, and especially the trailer highlight shark scene - one claimed by many as the most comical - wishing for a repeat of the shark scene from The Beach.
Despite the cast's obvious chemistry and solid acting, there was just too much kvetching about relationship quandaries to hold throughout the movie, and very little comedy for the mortar. As I've commented on another's review, the reason the rom-coms lose steam in the last act is the requirement to learn heart warming lessons. Made all the more unbelievable because the lessons are learned at a party on Eden East, a place and event just as vacuous as the movie itself. I guess my appreciation for the cast set me up for failure, and potential was not met.
Jason Elin
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Couples Retreat, April 22, 2010
I had heard a lot of negative things about this movie. But if one believes others views of movies, before seeing it themselves, sometimes you loose. The movie was great, absolutely great. My husband and some friends watched it back to back and had many laughs. Please don't believe what others say check things out for yourself.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
(2.5 stars) "It had potential...", April 2, 2010
Earning over 160 millions in theaters Couples retreat looks seems like a good idea on paper and even a potentially great comedy however, the resulting film is not as good as maybe it could have been. Vince Vaughn co-wrote the script and I feel that it was much better than the film turned out to be. Despite a talented cast of actors the movie is not as fun to watch as it should really be and leaves much to be desired. I got a few laughs out of Vaughn and Jon Favreau especially and liked Kristen Bell's acting as always but it seems that even those actors couldn't make anything great out of the script. I thought I'd ignore the negative reviews given to this movie give it a chance and enjoy it for what it was.
Jason and Cynthia invite other couples to their house to give them a presentation on Eden Island to interest them in a vacation. They announce that things aren't going so well with their own couple and are considering divorce; this will be a therapeutically vacation to them and is a chance for them to turn things around. While Jason and Cynthia work on their relationship and go in couple therapy the other couples are free to enjoy the Island's fun activities. After much arguing the couples all agree to go. When they arrive on Eden they are disappointed to learn that they all have to go through couple therapy which is not what they expected. The idea of sending four couples on an Island vacation mixed up with a few troubles here and there seemed like a somewhat enjoyable movie. Some moments were moderately funny and others came out to be not funny at all, I think some things supposed to make the audience laugh didn't work as thought out. I felt some parts of the movie dragged on and contributed to the movie receiving negative reviews.
It's not a horrible movie neither is it excellent, it's a little had to define and ranks somewhere between the two. It does have its fun parts that's for sure and some enjoyable moments but as far as this comedy go it's not really worth more than a rental. You could do a lot worse than rent this movie on a boring night but you could also do much better as well. I checked it out despite some negative reviews because I thought the cast was good and the story seemed good, I was curious about it. It's not all bad, it's certainly entertaining but I expected a little better to be honest. 2 and half stars for this one.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Two-and-a-half stars for Vaughn's Vacation, March 20, 2010
Most might think my two-and-half rating is quite scathing and therefore, think poorly of this film right off the bat. However, don't be too discouraged. "Couples Retreat" isn't all that bad. However, it's not noticeable either. The cast is all great with the exception of Kali Hawk, whose role could've honestly been played by any up-and-comer young pretty thing actress. I enjoyed the other Vince Vaughn-Jon Favreau vehicle Four Christmases more than this one.
The concept and structure of the story felt all too "sitcom special-goes-to-Hawaii," with each couple's problems magically getting resolved within one vacation. And although I could see a pair like Seth Rogen and Katherine Heigl (in Knocked Up - Unrated (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)) as a couple, the pairing of Vaughn and Malin Akerman seemed a little too unbelievable to me. I know Vaughn's a funny guy and all (I'd love to hang out with the guy), but it felt a bit too plotted and not real. Then again, this is a movie!
Jason Bateman and Kristen Bell shine as actors but are annoying as a couple who I would dread if I was friends with them in real life. This movie is enjoyable enough for those who enjoy nice, little romantic comedies, but it shouldn't be at the top of their queue to view. Instead, catch Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (MUCH better!) or even treat yourself to Valentine's Day.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
one star is too many, March 18, 2010
I would have rated this a zero if that option were available. People that I watched this movie with turned to each other after it was over and said, "What a waste of money!" I couldn't agree more. The script was absurd (it could have been a good concept with couples taking a trip together to a remote island full of funny characters, but those characters were not developed at all), some of the lead roles were horribly miscast, and whoever directed it failed to notice that the story line left big gaps. How do people like Vaughn and Favreau get financing when there are so many people out there with talent and real stories to tell? (The whole Judd Apatow/Seth Rogen series is another case in point-- one of their recent flicks holds the distinction of being THE WORST movie ever among my friends.) Sorta sad - and a real waste of money that could have gone for a much more benevolent cause.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Surprisingly Bad., April 24, 2010
I remember when Couples Retreat came out. Romantic comedies arent really my thing so I opted to see ZombieLand instead but was amazed at the long line in all the way down the theater for Couples Retreat. I believe the movie went to number 1???? Regardless I didnt view the film till the dvd release. My boyfriend and I were shockingly appalled by how bad this movie really was. The premise was utterly ridicously unrealstic. Jason Bateman and his wife Kristin Bell announce to their friends via powerpoint that they are heading towards divorce. They believe that the only way to save their sinking ship of a relationship is to travel to some exoctic island to do couple therapy because apparently thats not available here in the states. They convinve their friends to join in on the Pelican Package which is a group discount package. ALthough all the couples have kids and jobs to tend to they drop everything and head to the beautiful island, all to ready for some and fun. When they arrive they discover their friends have duped them. Pretty ironic!
I dont have enough patience to waste any more time reviewing this movie but I will say that I know so many people were excited to see this movie. It had as much hype as The Hangover surrounding it but it failed miserably to come through. what a terrible waste
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Mostly Dull, with A Few Good Momeents -, March 6, 2010
Couples Retreat could have been much funnier, but turns out to be a wannabe of the old Fantasy Island TV Series. One of the lines the welcomes spouts when the couples arrive at "Eden West" -was we need no money here - only smiles (gag). There were no smiles nor laughs during the movie, just a wild hope throughout that something crazy, zany would happen - It didn't. The humor was lost.
Vince Vaughn was the strongest character, and yet he could not pull humor out of this bland comedy. The cast was topnotch - Malin Akerman, Kristin Davis, Jason Bateman, Jon Favreau, Kristen Bell and Faizon Love but the script did no one justice. Eden is the tropical island resort that helps couples work out problems in the marriage. One couple had decided to divorce due to problems conceiving, but this trip was a last chance to make their marriage work. The other three couples enabled all to go half price, but they did not want counseling - they were there to play, to enjoy the sun and jet ski.
Counseling is mandatory at 6 a.m as a group and then individual couples counseling sessions as well. A satire of psycho-therapists that cause problems or complicate the couples lives ensues - whether steam baths with snow, snorkeling, yoga, New Age philosophy, or Asian teachings. It becomes too much for all of them, and nothing is helping. Soon they all end up on "Eden East" - the singles side of the island. For some odd reason they all realize what marriage means from that vacuous adventure.
If Lucy and Desi Arnez were alive today, they could have made Couples Retreat a hilarious laugh riot. Instead we get very rare funny moments and a bland moral lesson.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
PROMOTED wrongly, February 15, 2010
Vince Vaughn, Kristen Bell, Jason Bateman, Jon Favreau & Faizon Love are in this movie about couples going to a retreat resort to patch up their relationships. One couple is going because they need to, the others are going cause they want to party and they want to support their marriage-in-trouble friends. Hilarious right? You'd think. I mean, we've seen Vince Vaughn in "4 Christmas'", "Fred Claus", "Wedding Crashers", "Anchorman", "Dodgeball", and Kristen Bell in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall", or Jason Bateman who typically is known for T.V. roles is funny in "Arrested Development". Yet, I'm not sure if this was supposed to be funny, or the trailer just made it look like it was supposed to be funny, but ultimately, the jokes come running at you left and right, but time after time, fail miserably.
If you approach this movie in the proper manner, you might enjoy it. The movie is about love and relationships and stress surrounding relationships and and how our quirks can polorize our partner or how we get lost in our lives and forget to tell and show each other how much we care for them. Nothing funny about that. In fact, it's very truthful. That's how COUPLES RETREAT is. It is very truthful about relationships, yet, based on the trailer and its stars, you're looking for FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL, or WEDDING CRASHERS and... it isn't.
Yet, I'm confused because my intuition tells me that the creators were TRYING for the humor we got in the previous mentioned movies, but their jokes just didn't pan out. It just plain, isn't all that funny.
I mean, there's a whole scene of Vince Vaughn stumbling upon a previously stiff employee of the resort playing Guitar hero and they have a Guitar hero competition. The scene, meant to be funny, is about as exciting as it REALLY IS to watch somebody else play Guitar Hero... and that's a metaphor for the entire movie.
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