Film Review – Ticket to Paradise (2022)

Are there two more welcoming, wholesome, and genuinely lovely people in Hollywood than George Clooney and Julia Roberts? No, probably not. Certainly not Brad Pitt or Matt Damon if previous collaborations between them are anything to go by, but our choices seem sound. What is perhaps surprising is that, despite their crazy relationships through the first two Ocean’s films and Jodie Foster’s smart but flat Money Monster in 2016, the loveable duo haven’t collaborated on a comedy, one with all the romantic trimmings and sharp, quick-witted abilities of the two stars. Thankfully, you don’t have to wonder what it would look like anymore as Ticket To Paradise is the perfect excuse for them to reunite and, in doing so, remind us that the rom-com, when done right, is still alive and kicking. 

Outside of a few choice winners on streaming, where the majority of rom-coms seem to have ended up over the last few years (Danny Boyle‘s Yesterday and Crazy Rich Asians are perhaps the most high-profile in the interim), this year’s The Lost City provided evidence that there’s still life in the sub-genre and got some A-listers together in the right space and sparks still do fly. Similarly, in Ol Parker’s breezy, glamorous new effort, those same infernos of chemistry pulse throughout as our lead duo spar, quarrel, bicker, and dance (Naturally. What’s a Clooney film without some premium Dad dancing?) their way into our hearts once more.

As with the duo themselves, Ticket To Paradise is a wonderfully welcoming film helped by the fact that, for the most part, we are in paradise: Bali, to be exact (well, Australia standing in), and whilst now-divorced couple David (Clooney) and Georgia (Roberts) can’t stand each other they do have a daughter, the spunky Lily (Kaitlyn Dever) who dreams of being a lawyer. Enjoying a summer cool down with best friend Wren (Billie Lourde, stealing every scene) in the tropical paradise, Lily falls for local seaweed farmer Gede (Maxime Bouttier) and the couple decide to marry a mere 30 days or so later, much to her parents’ chagrin.

If that all sounds decidedly similar to many such films of its ilk, well, it is, right down to a tee but what elevates it above some more middling efforts is the natural, electric spark that Clooney and Roberts share, one that feels like it should be illegal given just how easy and natural the pair are, both as parents and as a couple. Like a wonderful match down at Wimbledon, the duo revel in the pithy, brusque back and forth that allows them both to bring their A-game to what would have otherwise been a worn, underwhelming comedy. Brilliantly supported by their young counterparts, all of whom perform superbly, such is the warmth and charm of the film that, despite its faults and obvious clichés that at times become a little irksome, you’ll be too busy bathing in the tropical surrounding and the glowing aftersun of its leads’ sensational chemistry.

★★★

2022 | Romantic Comedy | 12A | Universal Pictures UK | Dir: Ol Parker | Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Kaitlyn Dever, Billie Lourd, Maxime Bouttier, Lucas Bravo