Amis modernes

Le réalisateur de Easy A ne révolutionne pas le genre, loin s'en faut, mais le charme opère si bien entre ses deux vedettes, et la galerie de personnages secondaires est si attrayante (Patricia Clarkson, Woody Harrelson, Richard Jenkins), qu'on pardonne au film ses limites et son thème rabattu.

Oui, parce que cette bluette sans prétention renferme des répliques efficaces et une galerie de personnages secondaires colorés et divertissants. Non, parce que c'est décevant.

De beaux et bons acteurs mélangent amour, amitié et sexe dans Friends With Benefits, une pétillante comédie romantique qui se veut beaucoup plus conventionnelle qu'elle n'y paraît. Sexy à souhait.

I'd like to tell you that this is the first movie of its kind in which both participants realize that real friendship is all they need, they have tons of fun in the bedroom, and eventually forge a permanent life together based on mutual trust and respect. Instead the best I can tell you is that Friends with Benefits wants to be that movie, seems to know it needs to be that movie, and then tries mightily to be that movie.

While FWB may not re-invent the wheel when it comes to romance, it accepts that and finds a way to laugh at how generic romance can be on-screen. The performances are great, especially Kunis, Jenkins, Harrelson and Clarkson, and Gluck keeps it grounded. Not too many flights of fancy here, just a fresh look at the complexity of sex with friends.

It's an uneven comedy that takes full advantage of the charm and palpable chemistry between Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis.

Not only do Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis handle the tart banter with an assured, playful give-and-take in Will Gluck's grown-up romantic comedy, but - surprise, surprise - there's actually a palpable chemistry between them.

Director Will Gluck (Easy A), who wrote the script with Keith Merryman and David A. Newman, had the promising idea to have the characters mock the idea that they're in this sappy romcom. But soon they're slaves to the stereotypes they mean to tweak.

Friends With Benefits, a breezy, speedy and (no kidding) funny comedy with a nicely matched Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis that is about love and sex in the age of social networking, gets some of its juice and tang partly by trash-talking its own genre.