Seen on: October 6, 2009

The players: Director: Peter Billingsley, Writers: Dana Fox, Vince Vaughn, Jon Favreau, Cast: Vince Vaughn, Jason Bateman, Jon Favreau, Faizon Love, Kristin Davis, Kristen Bell, Malin Akerman, Jean Reno.

Facts of interest: None.

The plot: Four couples travel to a resort on a tropical island and soon realize they are forced to partake in therapy sessions.

Our thoughts: “Couples Retreat” is a totally forgettable comedy. There, I said it. It’s neither refreshing nor really funny, spending more than 100 minutes focusing on four simpleminded couples incapable of dealing with the problems in their relationships. Despite a couple of decent moments, this one’s a big drag, folks.

The script by Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn and Dana Fox couldn’t be more conventional and bland. The story goes like this: one couple on the verge of divorce wants to participate in some sort of counseling program at a tropic island resort, and in order to get the best price, they invite three other couples to come along.

Unfortunately, none of the others really know what they’re signing up for, so when they arrive on the island, they quickly discover they’re all forced to partake in a bunch of therapy sessions and other couple-related activities. Everybody must play the game, because otherwise, they’re kicked out of the program and off the island.

Films about friends or couples embarking on an adventure during a common vacation trip certainly aren’t new, and while some of these comedies can still be appealing and occasionally hilarious, this one is not. “Couples Retreat” is anything but a vacation. In my book, it’s just a boring, monotonous big-screen experience.

One of the things I struggled with during the film was its slow pace. Sure, it doesn’t take the couples too long to hit the road to paradise, but it’s what happens after their arrival at the beautiful Eden resort that really failed me to entertain. Why the heck did they forget to pack the fun and all the good jokes?

Essentially, the film’s simplistic story follows each couple as they slowly discover that not everything in their marriage or relationship is going all too well. Even though they hate the island therapy program at first, they soon realize that this trip may have actually created the perfect opportunity to save their relationships.

I don’t need to tell you what happen next, because it’s pretty obvious where this film is heading. Predictable at best, it spends all of its time following ignorant, stubborn people fighting and arguing before making up (and making out) like nothing ever happened. Well, if it’s that easy, bless the tropical therapy program.

Now, is “Couples Retreat” funny? Not in my opinion, no. Sure, the film boasts two hilarious moments that even made me laugh out loud, but other than that, the humor is standard material. A couple of jokes here and there are amusing, but overall, I wasn’t really amused.

Vince Vaughn does his usual stuff, but I wish he let someone else write the jokes for the character he plays. He talks fast and thinks everybody will laugh at what he has to say, and while I love him in other films, I just didn’t buy it this time. Same with the rest of the crew: they all try to be funny, but they’re really not.

Freaky quote: "It's Disneyland for adults." – Kristen Bell

The final word: “Couples Retreat” will probably to well at the box office thanks to its famous cast, and while each of these guys and girls inject their characters with a decent amount of energy, they just didn’t stick with me. To be honest, I felt relieved when the film reached its conclusion, and that’s never a good sign. I didn’t enjoy this one, but hey, maybe you will.

Article by Franck Tabouring