Vince Vaughn's latest movie leaves you wondering where his career went.
In his earlier days he made movies like Swingers and Made with his buddy John Favreau, who is also his co-star of their latest comedy, Couples Retreat. The movie could have been one of the funnier films of 2009, but instead it's a typical run-of-the-mill comedy.
The casting is excellent, but the writing is corny and cliché. It's possible that this movie would have been funnier a few years ago, but it's 2009 and Vaughn's sarcastic humor is no longer worth spending $10 to see.
The film takes no time to set the scene, as Jason (Jason Bateman, The Invention of Lying), and Cynthia (Kristin Bell, Astro Boy), are having marital problems. They invite their immediate group of friends over to sit down and watch a slide show, much to the dismay of Dave (Vaughn), and Joey (Favreau).
The couples realize that the slide show is actually a couple's resort getaway designed to restore happiness to Jason and Cynthia's marriage. From here, the film takes a turn for the worse, trying to piece together recycled material from other comedies.
Everything feels too rushed. As soon as they get to the island, Vaughn and Favreau try to make jokes about the way the rooms look, but they fall flat. Each scene was laughably predictable, losing the audience's patience halfway through the movie.
The movie fails to create significant laughs because it is everything the viewer has seen before, from the jacked yoga instructor who hits on married women to the raunchy middle-aged men who salivate over younger looking girls.
It's sad to see the types of films Vaughn continues to come out with. In case anyone is curious, Wedding Crashers did, in fact, come out in 2004, and yes, it was the last time he made something that was laugh-out-loud funny.
The Break-Up, Fred Claus and now this? It's time for Vaughn to go back to the drawing board and figure out something a little different, because he's not the box office draw he used to be.
Favreau has jumped into Vaughn's shoes as the arrogant funny man and the only bright spot in the movie. His smart humor and quick delivery almost make the viewer forget that Vaughn is the one who is supposed to be the driving force of the movie.
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Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
