A modern comedy about casual sex

Rating: Null/10 (31 July 2011)

Dylan (Justin Timberlake) and Jamie (Mila Kunis) are two beautiful, young, and charming individuals who fall in love under the most unconventional circumstances in the summer flick, "Friends with Benefits." During the process of recruiting Dylan to join a New York based magazine, Jamie shows Dylan some of New York's most famous attractions all while the two spark an innocent yet adventurous friendship. As the title alludes, the two confess their physical attraction to one another and swear to have casual sex without emotional commitment whatsoever. As they spend more time with each other and get to know the other better, they soon discover that their sexual routine changes their friendship for the worse.
In addition to the modern sexual overtones of the script "Friends with Benefits" captures the aesthetic values of New York City's bustling culture, diverse attitudes, and breath taking scenes. Early into the film, Jamie confidently declares that she is going to "sell" Dylan on "New York" and in doing so introduces him to the endless choices of eateries, rooftops of sky scrappers, and flash-mob routines in the middle of Time Square. How could Dylan resist? He is convinced to walk away from his life as a blogger in Los Angeles and take a job in a huge city where he knows one person- Jamie who has to be one the friendliest and most social people that the city has to offer. He doesn't want to admit it but her personality knocks him off his feet and he spends most of his time trying to convince himself that their relationship must remain confined to their "friends with benefits" status which gets more entertaining as the film progresses. Its very hard not to fall in love with this duo as friends or as lovers who want more but don't know how to uncomplicated things.
The supporting cast accounts for a number of the film's laughs. Lorna (Jamie's mother played by Patricia Clarckson) is the complete opposite of her career-driven mother. She binge drinks, sleeps around uncontrollably, and fears stability. Tommy (Woody Harrelson) is a gay sports editor at Dylan's magazine who prides himself upon being "strictly dickly" although he admires women as being superior to men. Go figure.
"Friends with Benefits" is a modern, raunchy yet tasteful romantic comedy about two confused people who struggle to maintain the status quo of how their relationship should develop and their endearing feelings for one another. It gets a rating of 7 out of 10.