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Just Friends
Metascore
47 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 28 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 28
  3. Negative: 8 out of 28
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  1. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Lisa Schwarzbaum
    83
    Argues on behalf of the Darwinian theory that all of life imitates high school...But the argument is only halfhearted. Just Friends is much more interested in - and hilarious about - the small nostalgias of suburbia.
  2. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Peter Hartlaub
    75
    A thoroughly enjoyable three-or four-gimmick comedy.
  3. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Scott Foundas
    70
    The infectious high spirits of the performers help to carry the day.
  4. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Mikael Wood
    70
    A refreshingly mean-spirited breeze through both the holiday movie and romantic-comedy checklists.
  5. Variety
    Reviewed by: Justin Chang
    70
    A surprisingly shrewd and energetic romantic comedy.
  6. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: David Hiltbrand
    63
    Thanks to director Roger Kumble's breathless pacing, Just Friends manages to outrun most of its flaws. And its likable leads - the coolly clownish Reynolds and the feline-faced Smart - fill this empty Christmas stocking with glee.
  7. USA Today
    Reviewed by: Mike Clark
    63
    Still, there are some funny surprises, from skewering overdone Christmas decorations to casting Chris Klein as a creep.
  8. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Ty Burr
    63
    Funnier than any low-rent rip-off of "There's Something About Mary" has a right to be. It's crass, it's unsophisticated, it aims right for the slapsticky pleasure center of the under-30 moviegoer's brain. So sue me, I laughed. A lot.
  9. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
    Reviewed by: Liam Lacey
    63
    A welcome antidote to the usual seasonal sweetness.
  10. Film Threat
    Reviewed by: Michael Ferraro
    60
    Despite the fact that we are watching Reynolds do the same schtick yet again, director Roger Kumble never lets him outlast a joke or take a gimmick too far. The plot is nothing short of formulaic but what comedy of this nature isn't these days?
  11. Empire
    Reviewed by: Helen O'Hara
    60
    Funnier than it has any right to be, thanks to Reynolds' charisma and Faris' bubbleheaded blonde.
  12. Baltimore Sun
    Reviewed by: Chris Kaltenbach
    58
    Whenever Just Friends threatens to become a total drag, Faris bops onscreen for some serious comic business - either saving the film, or making things worse by pointing out what could have been.
  13. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Allison Benedikt
    50
    But alas, even with young talent, director Roger Kumble and writer Adam Davis rely way too heavily (no pun intended) on the fat-suit joke and titular impasse.
  14. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Peter Debruge
    50
    This is superficial entertainment to say the least. But if you're looking for laughs, then Just Friends is just fine.
  15. Dallas Observer
    Reviewed by: Luke Y. Thompson
    50
    Where are our Tracy/Hepburn screwball combos? Part of the appeal of "Wedding Crashers" was that Isla Fisher truly did have the comedic chops to match Vince Vaughn, and Just Friends suggests that Reynolds and Faris have potential greatness together too. Just not so much in this film.
  16. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Stephen Hunter
    50
    In all, it's not too bad and it's not too long.
  17. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Andrea Gronvall
    50
    Chris Klein steals the film as a rival ex-nerd, now the most gorgeous guy in town, while director Roger Kumble (Cruel Intentions) cribs from the Farrelly brothers and the Three Stooges.
  18. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Bill White
    42
    Although set 10 years after high school graduation, Just Friends is a dumb teen comedy.
  19. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Nathan Rabin
    40
    The tantalizing promise of 90 heavenly minutes of Ryan Reynolds in a roly-poly fatsuit and unconvincing tubby make-up (which make him look like a younger version of Martin Short's Jiminy Glick) proves a case of the old bait-and-switch.
  20. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Thomas
    40
    This is a standard-issue gross Hollywood knockabout comedy in which slapstick antics have been piled up with a steam shovel and driven home with a sledgehammer. Reynolds and Smart are game and even dimensional, but all others are stuck playing tiresome, obnoxious characters.
  21. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Elizabeth Weitzman
    38
    And though Samantha is written as a sly spoof of Ashlee Simpson, Faris frantically overplays her. She might have taken a tip from Smart, a lovely, understated actress who wastes too much time in lousy films.
  22. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Kyle Smith
    38
    There's a line between rogue and jerk, and Reynolds lives on the wrong side of it. As Dusty, Klein is such a smooth operator that he could have been - should have been - the lead.
  23. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Maitland McDonagh
    38
    Ironically, Faris' Samantha is the most convincing personality in the mix: She's a grotesque caricature of Courtney Love by way of Nancy Spungen, a vulgar, selfish monster of unbridled id, but you always know where she's coming from.
  24. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Kirk Honeycutt
    30
    Just lousy.
  25. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marc Savlov
    30
    The script, by Adam "Tex" Vegas, ricochets between over-earnest romantic comedy staples and a noticeable lack of any consistent tone for Reynolds' character.
  26. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Stephen Holden
    30
    Overcompensates for its sloppiness with loud, knockabout farce.
  27. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    25
    There is not a spark of chemistry between Chris and Jamie, although the plot clearly requires them to fall in love. There is so much chemistry involved with the Anna Faris character, however, that she can set off multiple chain reactions with herself, if you see what I mean.
  28. ReelViews
    Reviewed by: James Berardinelli
    25
    There are bad movies and annoying movies, and this one contains elements of both.
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User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.1 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 41 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 17
  3. Negative: 1 out of 17
  1. Nathan
    5
    Anna Faris is the single thing that made this movie funny, other then that it was boring. I didn't really care about the characters and couldn't feel chemistry between them. It's nothing more than a rental.… Full Review »
  2. AngieL
    10
    Just watched it, funniest movie I have seen in ages.
  3. RaymondB.
    8
    Such a quotable movie. Just watch it and have a good time, because you will!
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