Just Go With It

Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston's latest rom-com has enough charm to overcome its dubious plot, and Nicole Kidman provides strong comic support.

Director: Dennis Dugan
Starring: Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston, Brooklyn Decker, Nicole Kidman
***

Adam Sandler plays Danny, a man who pretends to be unhappily married in order to seduce women. This ruse works until he meets the beautiful Palmer (Brooklyn Decker), a woman he believes is "the one" but who thinks he is cheating when she discovers a wedding band in his bag.

Telling her he is about to be divorced, he invents a scheme involving his colleague Katherine (Jennifer Aniston) posing as his ex-wife. Danny must make Palmer believe the elaborate charade, but his lies become harder to cover up. The film is a rarity in as much as it offers exactly what the trailer promises.

The story becomes a sideshow to gags as this very modern farce plays out with few surprises but frequently effective jokes. However dubious the whole plot may be, the charm of both leads evokes a feeling that you want them to succeed.

Both Sandler and Aniston never really deviate from their familiar personas - the former charming but morally lacking; the latter scatty but adorable (basically, Rachel Green).

Nicole Kidman also features as Katherine's college nemesis, and this rare comedic performance adds what every good "rom-com" needs - strong supporting characters. The film is far from original, and too long considering the inevitable outcome, but the A-listers (and the director Dennis Dugan, working with Sandler for the sixth time) are adept at delivering a familiar Hollywood comedy that doesn't tax the viewer intellectually. As a whole, Just Go With It has enough easy charm to pull you through.

For screening information, visit grandcinemas.com, cineroyal.ae, cinestarcinemas.com and reelcinemas.ae