John Brooks
Metascores and the cinema "specialist" clique will only rate a comedy if it's cynical, tries really hard to be clever and above everything else. So if a comedy comes across as obviously too mainstream, as having a "boring redundant same old chorus" of a "predictable" moral at the end and feels genuine and positive, then it's a complete failure and waste of time.Looking at the premise, the poster and the kind of promotion this film has brought upon itself you'd think it was only good for one laugh while half-wasted, and that's it. But that's just not the case.It immediately establishes that it's going to be that comedy that actually gave a darn and put effort into writing the jokes. We're not fed tripe, there's a real spirit in the humor here - and Reynolds as always provides his own quality touch where if you've seen him a couple of times before you know he's added some of the lines himself. The film is pretty swift at establishing the characters, some of the tensions, and delivering the premise straight away without messing around. And as that happens, as the two leads swap bodies and roles, we're given a realistic depiction onscreen of what that would really be like, the film doesn't just go right for the completely goofy ridiculous scenes and as it progresses, it's actually well acted out, well scripted, very well paced and, impressively mature. This was genuinely given some thought on where to go from A to B to C, so on, from the introductory setup to the later stages. Sure there's a little bit of improbable plot magic, but it's kept in check commendably well: a vast majority of what's going on makes sense and rings true. And where such a film usually pushes way too hard on the humor eventually, this keeps it fresh and interesting every time it should've crashed considering its category.A special mention to Leslie Mann who does surprisingly well (!). She helps convey key emotions for the plot and delivers in pivotal scenes that could've turned to trash very easily. Instead, there's real purpose and significance to those scenes, and she in particular did really well. The film poses questions as you'd expect from such a synopsis: two guys, mutually polar opposites, switch lives...surely they discover how much they loved their old regular life, but also the infatuating prospect of falling right into the perfect framework created by the other where all those new options are available...It's funny from start to finish, really funny in parts - it's full of twists and turns, nowhere near the linear development one would think; and it's totally coherent and fluid.
I'm going to go out of my way here, and actually give this a proper 8/10. For its kind, it's one of the best I've ever seen and could hope to watch.
nithirun
Before I watch this movie, I saw rating on this web is only 6. I think it will not be the good movie enough to see. But when I saw it, I change my mind. It have many thing that similar to other movie but there are something new to me too. Many scene is very funny. If you look only story, it is very good one. This movie teach a lots of think. Friends, Family, Love is important. Movie have some Rate-R scene because of sex, language ,and boobs but it not too much to me. If you don't be serious with that look it as joke. This movie is not too bad for teenager (It is too bad for children but it warn you with this rate)So it is comedy movie that you need to see.
Jackson Booth-Millard
I knew about the two leading actors of this film, and I knew it was something about swapping either bodies or lifestyles, of course when I knew for definite what the concept was I was looking forward to it, from director David Dobkin (Shanghai Knights, Wedding Crashers, Fred Claus). Basically in Atlanta, Georgia, Dave Lockwood (Jason Bateman) is a professional hardworking lawyer with wife Jamie Lockwood (Leslie Mann) and kids, and Mitch Planko (Ryan Reynolds) is an irresponsible slacker actor who has sex with various women, they are close friends and have become jealous of each other's lifestyles, so after both getting drunk this urinate in a park fountain together, and simultaneously wish they had each other's lives. The next morning Dave and Mitch have switched bodies, they meet up and realise it is because of the wish they made while urinating in the fountain, but returning to it's place it has been removed for restorations, so they are forced to wait until is located by the parks department, and they agree to pretend to be each other for the day. Mitch, as Dave, at the firm befriends Dave's attractive assistant Sabrina McArdle (Rush's Olivia Wilde), but lacking professionalism and with no legal knowledge he causes a big merger to fall through, and Dave, as Mitch, arrives on a movie shoot, but he was not told it would be a porno, the two try to convince Jamie of the situation, but she does not believe either of them, to help him Dave gives Mitch lessons of how to be professional, and Mitch sets Dave up on a date with Sabrina who he has had a crush on. Mitch at first admits to himself he is not cut out to dedicate himself to the demands of business, the responsibilities of looking after children, and maintaining a marriage, but he is determined to prove himself and others he can do it, while Dave takes advantage of the free lifestyle, doing everything he can to relax, and he also agrees to a date with Sabrina, but they actually start to like each other, and even get tattoos together. Dave does get a call from the District Manager's about the location of the fountain, but Dave and Mitch meeting each other imply that they both want to stay in each other's bodies, and in doing so Mitch secures a lucrative business deal for the firm after making partners, a gala is held to celebrate, Jamie also attending has been feeling unappreciated after a forgotten anniversary, and Dave is close to having sex with Sabrina. At the gala a presentation showing the accomplishments Dave has achieves over the years is playing, but Mitch knows it is not him, and Dave remembers his family when Sabrina is getting undressed, getting together they realise they want their own lives back, Dave kissing Jamie does make her realise he is in Mitch's body, and they rush to the Peachtree Galleria where the fountain is located, but they are surrounded by hoards of people. Eventually they both relax and urinate and after the three tries manage to wish themselves back into their original bodies and lifestyles, the next morning Dave wakes happy to be with Jamie and his children, and Mitch admires himself and takes Sabrina to breakfast, Mitch speaks at the wedding of his father (Alan Arkin), and Dave and Jamie celebrate their anniversary, with his friend invited. Also starring Mircea Monroe as Tatiana, Gregory Itzin as Flemming Steel, Ned Schmidtke as Ted Norton, Ming Lo as Ken Kinkabe, Sydney Rouviere as Cara Lockwood and Scary Movie 4's Craig Bierko as Valtan. Obviously at first Bateman and Reynolds play the characters you would expect, but once they swap bodies they absolutely play against type and the best laughs come from them trying to adapt and get lost in the chaos, Mann is great being dry as well. This is exactly the same kind of body swap movie as something like Freaky Friday, but much more funny and for the older generation, full of unrelentless gross out moments, sexual stuff and bad language, there are the small sentimental moments, but that does not spoil it from being a great shake-up to the genre, a hilarious comedy. Very good!
