Thousands of romantic comedies have been made and enjoyed throughout the decades. They are known for their predictable plots accompanied by catchy music, and Ticket to Paradise is here to remind us why the formula works if you can bring your own charm to it. Ol Parker returns to captivate hearts after finding success with Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again back in the summer of 2018. The British director and writer knows how to use his protagonists’ best tools and charisma to create a decent rom-com.
David (George Clooney) and Georgia (Julia Roberts) have been divorced for years and can barely stand to be in the same room as the other. Much to their dismay, they are forced to work together to prevent their daughter, Lily (Kaitlyn Dever), from marrying a man she just met while partying on her college graduation trip. It may seem like a simple case of divorced parents attempting to stop their daughter from making the same mistake they did 25 years ago, but the intricate scheme they come up with is filled with ups and downs, with plenty of heart and fun to go around.
The amusing, charming, and heartfelt performances are truly the main foundation of this movie. Clooney and Roberts show us why they are some of the world’s biggest stars, filling the screen with charisma and conveying their characters’ thoughts with their million dollar smirks. Since David and Georgia’s first bickering discussion at Lily’s graduation, the viewer is made aware of the kind of trip they’re about to experience. Whether they’re arguing, avoiding each other, or dancing together after a couple of drinks, you can’t take your eyes away from the joyful pair.
Ticket to Paradise truly makes the best use of its location, and Parker shows a good understanding of his surroundings when capturing the Australian coast as a stand-in for Indonesian beaches. The sunlight, waves, and palm trees help Ticket To Paradise look like a heavenly vacation. This makes the characters having to sleep outside one night plausible, instead of us having to wonder just how many mosquitoes must be going after them.
Roberts and Clooney’s characters aren’t the only highlight of the movie, as there are some terrific secondary characters introduced in this tropical affair. Lucas Bravo plays Paul, a commercial pilot who’s currently dating Georgia and happens to fly the plane which takes the divorced couple to Bali. He seems unable to make decisions of his own, always doing exactly what Georgia wants from him. While, at first, this seems to be a trope that would get old remarkably quickly, it actually gets funnier because Parker and fellow writer Daniel Pipski knew how to handle the bit without ruining it.
The happily engaged couple are also delightful. As Lily’s fianceé, Gede (Maxime Bouttier) doesn’t take too long in figuring out what his future in-laws are doing, prompting him to subvert the rom-com trope and becoming a more active character in the process. These slight detachments from what has come before in the genre is more than enough to keep the ride interesting. Every character in this film begins as a big comedy stereotype before demonstrating the opposite, leading to an amusing game of waiting for the unexpected.
Ticket To Paradise’s minor setbacks include some pacing issues, specifically concerning the second act. It remains a romantic comedy, after all, making the predictable plot sluggish as it approaches its conclusion. Perhaps with a shorter runtime, the movie would have knocked it out of the park.
Ticket To Paradise is an amusing romantic voyage, with enchanting performances that will satisfy any fan of the rom-com genre. Roberts and Clooney radiate enough chemistry to power a city in a heartwarming romance which demonstrates their star power is as relevant as ever.
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