Movie Review: Just Friends
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What Parents Should Know
Parents should know that the movie pushes the limits of
PG-13. It's crude and there are frequent sexual allusions (to
masturbation, genitals, and other sexual activities). It moves
beyond satire to vulgar cruelty as it lampoons women,
homosexuals and just about everyone else. Characters smoke
cigarettes and drink; one character appears "high" after she
taking Vicodin. An Ashlee-Simpson-styled pop singer wears
revealing clothing (tight and midriff-revealing tops) and
attempts to seduce a high school student. The film includes
frequent "New Jersey" jokes along with a bit of mild cursing
(including half an f-word.
Families can discuss Chris's efforts to overcome his high school reputation and the shame he felt when kids teased him. How does his younger, sweet, overweight self contrast with his 10-years-later "playboy" self? How does his relationship with genuine nice girl Jamie contrast with his distaste for self-involved Samantha?
Common Sense Media Review
Perhaps the only nice thing that can be said about this
boisterous romantic comedy, is that it isn't quite as
desperately rude as Ryan Reynolds' other recent film,
Waiting. But it pushes the PG-13 rating with vulgar
language and situations. It begins at high school graduation
for best friends Chris Brander (Ryan Reynolds) and Jamie
Palamino (Amy Smart). Though he wants to tell her he wants to
be "more than friends," she's distracted by her popular crowd's
shenanigans: they taunt Chris for being overweight.
Ten years later, Chris is a thin, successful L.A. music industry executive and callow ladies man. At Christmas time, he's transporting Samantha (Anna Faris) to Europe. She's one of his label's "artists" (actually, a terrible singer who poses for posters with whipped cream on her breasts), and determined to get Chris into bed (again, as they apparently had a one-night stand years before). The plane is detained in New Jersey, and Chris takes Samantha home to meet his mother Carol (Julie Hagerty) and his adolescent brother Mike (Christopher Marquette).
Chris discovers Jamie working at a local bar, whereupon he decides that he'll "get even," for having his heart broken a decade earlier by seducing and abandoning her. This leads to several awkward situations and physical humor, especially as he leaves Samantha with Mike (who keeps the whipped cream poster in his bedroom). Soon, of course, Chris realizes that he really does love her, and so endeavors to impress her in earnest.
At this point, Chris is disheartened by the appearance of an old rival for Jamie's affection, the former stutterer Dusty Dinkleman (Chris Klein). Now cleaned up, dashing, and utterly devious, Dusty is the much "worse" version of the new Chris, which in turn shows him the error of his ways and inspires him to protect Jamie from him.
Faris (star of the Scary Movie series) again demonstrates that she is fearless when it comes to physical stunts and comedic emotional excesses, making you wish that she might find a role that would allow her to stretch in other directions. Unfortunately, Samantha is Just Friends's primary butt of uninspired sexual titillation jokes, which leaves Jamie as the banal "good girl." Add to this line-up Hagerty's clueless mom, and the women in this movie are mostly props for the boys' violent humor (the brothers and the romantic rivals both engage in vigorous scraps) and self-absorption.
Families who like unruly romantic comedies would be better served by seeing The Nutty Professor and Meet the Parents, or the similarly themed but R-rated There's Something About Mary or American Pie.
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
