Couples Retreat has potential but very little of it is fulfilled. Students of screenwriting should study it carefully: it takes far too long to get going, seems like it will never finish and is a very good example of how not to craft a romantic comedy. There are one or two funny moments, but if you've seen the trailer - or even the poster - you're likely to know exactly what to expect.
Vince Vaughn, whose Hollywood star is currently so powerful that his is the only name above the title, has co-produced and co-written the film along with his fellow Swingers alumnus (and erstwhile director of the Iron Man franchise) Jon Favreau. They are two of four men who agree to take their wives to a luxury Pacific retreat called Eden in order to help out their buddy (played by Jason Bateman) salvage his relationship, whose love of Powerpoint presentations brings a few early laughs.
The wives come along for the ride (very much playing second fiddle here), and we are 'treated' to a fish-out-of-water comedy. You see, instead of going to the fun-filled Western side of Eden, they end up in the controlling Eastern side. It's bizarrely (and probably unintentionally) reminiscent of the Yul Brynner classic Westworld - and things look up on the comedy front when the excellent Peter Serafinowicz turns up as the very uptight cam leader.
Unfortunately he is onscreen all too briefly (apart from a cringe-inducing finale which sees some audacious product placement). Instead we have Jean Reno wasted as the spiritual leader of the camp and Carlos Ponce as a Hispanic yoga instructor who appears to be copying wholesale Hank Azaria's turn as the bronzed loverat in the Ben Stiller comedy Along Came Polly.
The couples are meant to learn something about themselves. We learn nothing though, except that trying to wrap up a film involving 8 major characters is a painful exerience to watch. It could easily have done with being 20 minutes shorter: most audience members made a hasty retreat when the credits finally arrived.
Paul Hurley
