George Clooney and Julia Roberts are humiliated with infantilism.

And that's another good part of the movie

The best romantic comedies are the ones that also manage to say something about love and relationships beyond the question of who the hero or heroine will marry, and the awkward movie "Ticket to Heaven", starring two of the most beloved actors in the world, manages to stutter at most something about the need to listen to the heart

Naama only

09/23/2022

Friday, September 23, 2022, 09:07 Updated: 09:11

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The trailer for the movie "Ticket to Heaven" (courtesy of Tulip entertainment)

Star rating for movies - 2.5 stars (photo: photo processing, .)

For some time now, the romantic comedy has been at the bottom of the film world's priorities.

There are many explanations and reasons for this, but the main one is that the genre has worn out, become obsolete and failed to reinvent itself to suit the cynical age in which we live.

Lots of movies that have hit the screen in recent years - whether in cinema or on Netflix - have tried to refresh the formula in different ways.

Mixing with other genres, characters from diverse backgrounds, stylistic innovations, less well-worn relationships, what not.

Some succeeded in the task, others less so.

"Ticket to Heaven" is not really such an attempt, in a way it is even an admission of defeat - yes, we know that our audience is older, nostalgic for the nineties and completely devoid of edge, so here is a film especially for them.

Casting Julia Roberts in a romantic movie, even at the age of 54, is always a right move.

No matter how silly or casual the plot you give her, she will always know how to present it with a smile and with the right charm.

In "Ticket to Heaven" she teams up with George Clooney (already 61 years old) for the fourth time, after the two "Ocean" films and the rather negligible thriller "The Money Monster".

Roberts and Clooney are Georgia and David, two workaholics who still carry the scars of their failed marriage.

They married young, gave birth to a daughter in a flash and divorced in great fury a few years later.

Although 20 years have passed since the separation, they can hardly stay together in the same space without starting to fight and blame each other for everything that is bad in their lives.

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Clooney and Roberts.

A ticket to heaven (photo: Tulip entertainment)

Stuck in the middle is daughter Lily (Caitlin Deaver, "Plowing the Night", "Unbelievable"), a fresh college graduate and confused.

Just before she starts her own glorious career as a lawyer, she goes to clear her head in Indonesia and falls in love.

A handsome seaweed farmer named Gada (Maxim Boutier) captures her heart, but more than that, she falls in love with the stunning landscapes and the relaxing and pleasant life, a refreshing change from the pressure and ambition that characterized her adolescence.

A month later, she already invites mom and dad to a wedding on the remote island, and the two declare a temporary ceasefire with the goal of canceling the wedding at all costs.

Then we have the romantic comedy starring the bitter exes, because as we know hate and love are similar feelings.

As expected, Clooney and Roberts work well together - they deliver without stopping at witty barbs and it's quite clear why they hold a grudge against each other.

This relative success can only be attributed to them, because the direction and the script don't give them a lot of good material to work with.

The jokes are mostly silly, especially when these two serious adults try to foil the wedding with childish schemes like stealing rings or dragging the couple in love to a cursed temple.

The film repays them with very silly humiliations, from swimming with dolphins that goes wrong to a very clichéd drunk scene.

A ticket to heaven (photo: Tulip entertainment)

Once we move to the romantic part of this romantic comedy, things get even worse.

The only reason this new-old relationship even arises is that we expect it from him and the feeling is that the characters themselves are not really interested, they are even embarrassed by the option.

Georgia and David's problem isn't some uncontrollable mutual passion, but the fact that they can't let go of the past in a healthy way.

In order to convince us that these two should end up together, we need to do a little more than soul-searching at sunset and more rom-com clichés that even the characters sting as they happen.

Considering the amount of spectacular fools in the film of beaches, cliffs and forests, there is a situation that the real love story here is between the film and the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism.

The truth is that the romantic comedy here feels a bit like bait, when underneath this promise is hidden the family drama, and in particular the relationship between the mother and her daughter.

Georgia thinks Lily is repeating the mistakes she herself made when she throws away her career for a man, and more on the other side of the world, but for Lily the new life with Gada is the first time she feels at home.

The tension and criticism also flow in the opposite direction, as Lily belittles Georgia's relationship with a handsome young pilot named Paul (Lucas Bravo, Gabriel from "Emily in Paris").

These complex relationships are very present in the story but not in a particularly profound way, and it's a bit of a shame that it is - it's the emotional heart of the film, much more than the romance.

A ticket to heaven (photo: Tulip entertainment)

If we have already mentioned Paul, this is the latest victim of the "unnecessary friend" syndrome accepted in the genre.

The film repeats and makes it clear to us that he is nothing more than an obstacle to the couple that we are really supposed to cheer for, but he kind of forgets to explain why actually.

Paul is a nice guy who is not just in love with Georgia, he literally worships her.

He is indeed too enthusiastic, but why would we prefer to see the heroine with the hated divorcee who does absolutely nothing to win her back?

Besides, everything that makes Paul the "wrong" guy also makes him a fun character to watch - he won't make it, he's innocent and he does way too much to win his lover's heart.

All the best to him.

Another character who is integrated into the story mainly for laughs is Lily's alcoholic friend, Warren (Billy Lord, "American Horror"), who is not given any significant role in the plot, yet she steals the show again and again.

Warren's shenanigans are mainly there to emphasize how responsible, serious, and tight-lipped her girlfriend is until she gets to Indonesia, but even after she "breaks free," Lily is a pretty oppressive character.

Her partner barely gets half a teaspoon of character and most of the film is occupied with worried looks and fear for his future father-in-law.

The romantic relationship between the two young men is also as interesting as a rice crispie, and this actually lies in the biggest miss.

The romance of "Ticket to Heaven" grows in a cynical and sour environment, after all, in the background of Lily and Gada's quick falling in love is always the sour breakup of Georgia and David.

And yet, the characters continue to insist that everything is fine because they are truly and completely in love, as if the bride's parents didn't feel the exact same way in their time, and as if that love eliminates all potential problems in the fast-paced relationship.

The best romantic comedies are the ones that also manage to say something about love and relationships beyond the question of who the hero or heroine will marry, and this film manages to stutter at most something about the need to listen to the heart.

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• George Clooney

• Julia Roberts