Review of Couples Retreat (2009) by Dg J — 21 Dec 2011
Dave (Vince Vaughn), a dealer for Guitar Hero, and Ronnie (Malin Åkerman), a stay-at-home mom, are a typical couple with two young boys. They experience various stresses including redecorating their house and raising their sons. Joey (Jon Favreau) and Lucy (Kristin Davis) are high school sweethearts with a typical rebellious teenage daughter named Lacey. Their relationship is on the rocks. Jason (Jason Bateman) and Cynthia (Kristen Bell) are a neurotic couple who've experienced multiple failed attempts to conceive, and Shane (Faizon Love), who has recently separated from his wife and has a much younger twenty-year-old girlfriend, Trudy (Kali Hawk).
At Dave's son's birthday party, Jason and Cynthia, using PowerPoint, announce their troubled marriage and that they are considering divorce because they cannot have a baby. As a last-ditch effort, they have found a couples therapy resort named Eden. A deal called the Pelican Package is half the normal cost if they can get three other couples to join them. In their presentation, they show beautiful pictures of sunlit beaches and beautiful locations. They also assure the others that the couples therapy is purely optional.
Dave and Ronnie discuss their inability to go because of childcare responsibilities and decline the trip. In the middle of the night their home security alarm is activated when Jason shows up unexpectedly to further sell the idea of the retreat. The commotion wakes the kids, who have overheard their parents' conversations of not being able to go because of them. Fearing that their parents are contemplating divorce, the kids have already arranged for Dave's father, Grandpa Jim-Jim (played by Vince Vaughn's real-life father, Vernon Vaughn) to babysit so their parents can go to Eden.
The retreat proves to be divided into Eden West and Eden East. West is for couples and uses the tagline "Stay Together". East is for singles and uses the tagline "Come Together". East and West attendees are not allowed to intermingle.
This review of Couples Retreat (2009) was written by Dg J on 21 Dec 2011.
Couples Retreat has generally received mixed reviews.
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