friends with benefits **

In the last couple days I moved into a chick-flick binge. It's not something I'm very proud of.

Anyway, while on this binge I saw Friends With Benefits, starring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis. Last summer I saw (and loved) No Strings Attached, with Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher. It was odd to see two movies with such similar premises come out in the same year, in the same summer, I think. Two friends decide to hookup, a sex-only deal, no emotions, no relationship, no breakfast the morning after. In each these friends learn that just having sex with someone, without any emotional attachment, is a lot harder than they thought.

Anyway, back to the point. As I said, I loved No Strings Attached. Friends With Benefits, not so much. I think for me it was just the quality of the acting, as well as the script, that made Friends With Benefits pale in comparison to No Strings Attached. And with Natalie Portman in that cast, I'm hardly surprised.

For example: Emma Stone, who has this teeny tiny role in the first five minutes of Friends With Benefits, plays the 'crazy girl', the totally needy, annoying ex-love interest of Justin Timberlake. Those first five minutes were my favorite. Emma Stone lit up the screen and cracked me up. After that I was left with Timberlake and Kunis who weren't unfunny, they just didn't make me smile like Stone did.

Needless to say, Friends With Benefits was not my favorite movie, or chick-flick for that matter. Just wanted to let you know.