Just Go With It

Just Go With It 12A 104 minutes

She has a beautiful smile and a wonderful figure. She is charming and funny and her timing is excellent. She is diligent, committed and works hard, averaging two films a year since 2005. But how long can she go on playing the same roles? What roles is she capable of playing next? Will Jennifer Anniston ever star in a truly memorable movie?

In her latest attempt to define herself as the queen of RomCom, the forgettably named “Just Go With It”, Anniston plays Katherine, a dowdy, bespectacled, but loyal sidekick of successful, playboy, plastic surgeon, Danny (Adam Sandler). Via a thoroughly convoluted and totally unbelievable storyline, Anniston finds herself not only pretending to be Sandler's soon-to-be ex-wife but also lending him her children, all in the name of his latest sexual conquest, a 23 year old maths teacher, Palmer (Brooklyn Decker) with a figure to die for. The group set off for Hawaii to swim with dolphins and bond as a group… and it is only a matter of time before Anniston's grace, beauty and charm, well you can probably guess the rest.

Anniston is impressive. Time (or minor surgery) has been incredibly kind and she remains quite stunning with a figure to match. While her range might be limited, she has become the most successful (and most prolific) of the Friends' sextet not just because she is committed but also because she recognises those limitations and plays to her strengths. Sandler is more complex. More talented perhaps – who can forget his portrayal of an innocent victim whose life is totally shattered by the events of 9/11 in Reign Over Me – he appears to prefer the comfort and safety of infantile humour. Here he reverts to type with almost two hours of goofy gags and slapstick.

Surprisingly, it works – the gags are often (very) funny and the chemistry with Anniston is good. Katherine's kids Maggie (Bailee Madison) and Michael ( Griffin Gluck) contribute to the fun - although Maggie's English accent, funny at first is irritating by the end - but Sandler's pal, Eddie (Nick Swardson) is over the top particularly in the scene with the dying sheep in Hawaii (don't ask). Decker is sweet (and sexy) enough as the object of Sandler's affections but Nicole Kidman steals the show with a short cameo as Katherine's obnoxious former school friend.

Director Dennis Dugan, who worked so successfully with Sandler on Happy Gilmore, tries to keep some sort of order out of this mayhem and while the movie is unlikely to linger too long in the memory, it's a surprisingly enjoyable night out.

Verdict
Light, breezy and fun. 6/10