As the title implies, Friends with Benefits deals with the social convention of what is meant to be meaningless sex between good friends. It's a fun, semi-raunchy, fast-paced romantic comedy which owes much of its considerable charm to the sizzling chemistry between leads Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis.
It's by no means a new idea; most recently Kunis' Black Swan co-star Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher explored the same theme in No Strings Attached. Friends with Benefits takes a similar approach, although the characters here are, collectively, even more emotionally challenged.
The lead characters are influenced by their parents' dysfunctional relationships; Jamie (Kunis) is emotionally damaged and desperately believes in true love, and Dylan (Timberlake) is emotionally off-limits, prioritising his work over relationships. The two meet when Jamie, a New York headhunter, brings Dylan to New York to become the new art director at GQ Magazine. They start hanging out, become good friends, and bond over tales of their failed relationships, so after admitting a physical attraction to each other they decide on being "friends with benefits".
A collection of hilarious sex scenes follow, along with Jamie and Dylan's mockery of romantic comedy films as they discuss their predictability, phony characters and dubious soundtracks. It's hard to disagree, but as much as Friends with Benefits is aware of the genre's formulaic pitfalls it can't avoid playing to them. As you expect, the sex becomes less meaningless as their friendship grows, and being friends with benefits turns out to be more complicated than Dylan and Jamie had initially imagined.
Kunis and Timberlake work brilliantly together and are utterly convincing as both friends and lovers, and while they appear to be typical good looking leads they're also endearing and more than happy to make fools of themselves. Timberlake shows he's got the chops to be both funny and act, and together these first-time leads prove they can carry a film.
It helps that they're surrounded by an impressive supporting cast that includes Patricia Clarkson as Jamie's hippie mother, and Richard Jenkins as Dylan's father, who is suffering from Alzheimers; both add a touch of class and look like they're enjoying being part of something light and frivolous.
Friends with Benefits doesn't reinvent the genre, or even add anything particularly new, but with its New York setting, natural ease between its leading couple, flash mob performances and fast talking script it is a refreshingly entertaining and sweet rom-com.
Stars: 3.5/5
Cast: Justin Timberlake, Mila Kunis, Patricia Clarkson
Director: Will Gluck
Running time: 110 mins
Rating: R16 (Drug use, sex scenes & offensive language)
Verdict: Not as smart as director Gluck's Easy A, but still a sassy, enjoyable and well-cast rom-com.
- TimeOut