'Ticket To Paradise' review: Formulaic rom-com saved by Clooney and Roberts

Still Photography on the set of "Ticket To Paradise"

Ticket to Paradise

Director: Ol Parker

Cast: George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Kaitlyn Dever, Billie Lourd, Maxime Bouttier and Lucas Bravo

Ticket To Paradise is one of those films that you can pretty much predict what will happen right from the beginning until the end. Now, predictability does not necessarily mean a movie is bad, but this one doesn't even try to add something original to its cliched plot.

Thank goodness then, for George Clooney and Julia Roberts, whose chemistry is so electrifying here that it ALMOST manages to distract us from the fact that the story is so flat.

Clooney and Roberts play divorced parents David and Georgia Cotton, who decide to travel to Bali to stop their love-struck daughter, Lily (Kaitlyn Dever) from marrying an Indonesian man named Gede (Maxime Bouttier), whom she met for just over a month. Worried that she would end up making the same mistake as they did 25 years ago, the pair decide to team up and sabotage Lily’s wedding.

Hey look, it's the ocean. No, not you, Danny Ocean.

Sounds familiar? Well, this is by the director and writer of the 2018 film Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again after all, and Ol Parker sticks to that tried an tested formula for Ticket To Paradise.

In fact, he doesn't even TRY to do anything dfferent – everything bar the ABBA songs is there, from the wedding plans in a breathtaking overseas beachside location, to the constant bickering and on-and-off romance between the parents.

In the end, it is up to his Oscar-winning stars to salvage the entire film with their amazing chemistry. The actors were incredible together on screen – vibrant and full of energy, effortlessly hilarious, and fun to watch.

Sure, you've got nice abs, but have you ever worn a Batsuit with plastic nippled and sculpted abs?

It's as if the entire film was written just for the two of them, even though the supporting cast was pretty decent with their performance as well, particularly Billie Lourd as the drunk best friend. Booksmart star Denver's scenes with Indonesian heartthrob Bouttier were convincing too, and they make for decent eye candy as well. It's just a shame that the plot doesn't give them more to work with.

In short, fans of the Ocean 11’s franchise would probably be thrilled to see Clooney and Roberts back again, as their chemistry is probably the only reason to catch this otherwise ordinary and formulaic romantic comedy.