Director: Tom Vaughan
OK here we go, yet another romantic comedy. I must have seen dozens of romantic comedies over the years but I don't think I could single one out if I tried.
It's as if Hollywood has developed a special software program to churn out romantic comedy storylines. The fundamentals are always the same 's the initial antagonism between the would-be lovers, the goofy best friends, the misunderstandings, the public reconciliation at the end 's while the small details change just enough to convince you that you're watching a new film.
"What Happens in Vegas" is actually an enjoyable and rather amusing little movie, so long as you don't mind the fact that it's a virtual replica of countless other romantic comedies.
Jack (Ashton Kutcher) is a happy-go-lucky sort of guy who likes to sleep around and who is so irresponsible that his own father fires him from his job in his carpentry firm. Joy (Cameron Diaz) is a high-flying, uptight sort of gal whose high-flying fiance leaves her because, well, she's just too uptight.
The sacked Jack and jilted Joy head off to Vegas with their best friends for a weekend of debauchery. They meet after a mix-up with their hotel rooms and end up having a wild, drunken night together. In the morning they awake in the same bed and realize, much to their horror, that they've done a Britney Spears. In other words, they got married while very, very, drunk.
Convinced that they could never be together because they're so different, they decide to part ways and annul the marriage. But at that very moment Jack puts Joy's quarter into a slot machine and wins $3 million. You can probably guess the rest from this point.
Forced by a judge to live together for six months before he'll grant them a divorce, Jack and Joy both pretend "to work" at their marriage in the hope of being awarded a divorce and a cut of the $3 million.
The scenes in Vegas are actually very funny thanks to Cameron Diaz's comic talent and her wonderful, almost Ben Stiller-esque ability to humiliate herself. The rest of the film is pleasant enough to watch but totally predictable.
If it's raining, or you're bored, or you've two hours to kill before an appointment, or you're writing a thesis on the structural affinities of the romantic comedy, I can recommend "What Happens in Vegas" in good conscience.
Opens May 9 in Estonia and Latvia and May 16 in Lithuania
