"What Happens in Vegas" Review

I'll be honest, I had absolutely no desire to see "What Happens in Vegas" at all. The preview really didn't look very good, and I wasn't going to waste my time.

Then, I was hanging out with my friend Amanda last night, and it was the last time I'll get to see her for a while - because right now she's waiting in Charlotte to catch a plane to Athens and then she'll be in Jordan for three weeks after that. We decided to hang out last night and I decided to let her pick the movie we were going to watch. So, I ended up seeing a movie I didn't have any intention of seeing.

Now, the good part was this: My intentions were so low, and I was expecting such a horrible film - that I actually enjoyed it for the most part. The storyline was nothing new or mind-bending. From the preview, you knew exactly what you were getting into, and you knew that even when things were looking good - they were going to turn bad, but then they would somehow all work out in the end. No big surprises, but that was fine.

The emotions that are tackled in this flick are actually pretty interesting. After the drunken "marriage" in Vegas - and the winning of $3 Million - Kuthcer and Diaz's characters have A LOT of baggage that ends up being addressed throughout the film. From the emotions of being dumped by someone, to the hope of reconciliation, to not living up to your parent's expectations, it was a lot to handle, and I felt like they handled it well.

I laughed a lot during the movie, I laughed A LOT more than I thought I was going to. Some running gags, some witty comments, it was a lot better than I thought. Although, I do ask myself this question: "Would I have laughed so much, if I was just watching it with a small group of people?" See, we went and watched the film in an almost sold-out auditorium at Castleton - and it's been a long-standing theory of mine, that when I see films in larger groups, I laugh more than when I just screen the films with small groups of friends. I'm going to continue to allow myself to believe that I did just enjoy the film for what it was: Entertainment, and nothing more. I don't think it was anything special cinematically, and I don't think it's the smartest thing ever written. But, for last night, it was what we were looking for. So, I'll just keep telling myself that I enjoyed it, despite the fact that I didn't want to.