Couples Retreat Review

It's hard for me to watch the movie Margot at the Wedding. In my two viewings, I hated Margot more and more each time. Couples Retreat falls in the same vein. I hate all the couples, so the real question is why do I want to spend nearly 2 hours with them? And even so, why do I want to spend 2 hours with them analysing WHY it is I hate them.

This...well we'll call it a comedy but to be honest I don't know WHAT it is, is what major Hollywood funnymen Vince Vaughn, John Favreau, and Jason Bateman have decided to make when they don't want to be funny. It's a story of 4 couples at different points in their relationships coming together on an island named Eden, where they are expecting to have a grand old time swimming, drinking, jet skiing, fishing, and being tourists. What they get is a couples skill building course where the fun and games come second to strengthening ones relationship.




What ensues is annoying and loud, immature and unfunny, and overall sad. While Vince Vaughns character and his wife seem to have a steady hand on what it's like to be married, the other 3 couples ruin whatever wit and insight is given in their portion of the story. Jason Bateman and his characters wife played by Kristen Bell, are the worst, with Bateman being loud and controlling, and his wife butting heads with him at every turn. Favreau and his wife cheat on each other and seem to not love each other any more and Fazion Love's character and his girlfriend simply don't add anything but wasted time and space.

If this is a comedy, why is it not funny? Vaughn gets some good zingers across, but there are very little laughs in a movie that seems to dwell in it's own pity and sadness til the last 20 minutes. And when the ending finally does come, we know it's Hollywood style ending is unrealistic and unsatisfying. Why do I want characters fight for an hour and a half and see 10 minutes of happiness? I don't. Which is why Couples Retreat ends up being one of the worst movies of the year. Grade - D