Just Friends

Manic energy and an agreeable degree of comic insanity turn Just Friends into the kind of brainless comedy that makes for a modest guilty pleasure. Basically on a par with director Roger Kumble's previous comedy, The Sweetest Thing, this one's low-concept premise revolves around a formerly fat high-schooler named Chris (Ryan Reynolds) who's transformed, 10 years later, into a womanizing music executive with a high-profile client (Anna Faris) in the Britney Spears/Christina Aguilera mold. As it zips along with some broad-stroked slapstick and snappy one-liners, the screenplay by Adam “Tex” Davis contrives to reunite Chris with Jamie (Amy Smart), the former cheerleader who was the great, unrequited love of Chris' miserable high-school life. But he gets unexpected competition in the form of a “Mr. Sensitive” type (Chris Klein, from American Pie), and it's pretty much Hollywood formula from there on. While Reynolds (the star of National Lampoon's Van Wilder) invests his character with an unexpected degree of emotional nuance, Faris (Scary Movie 3) pulls out all the stops, going deliriously over-the-top to maintain her reputation as a rising comedy starlet with a (hopefully) promising future. A strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD extras include an audio commentary (by director Roger Kumble, writer Adam Davis, producer Chris Bender, co-producer Jake Weiner, and executive producers Richard Brener and Cale Boyter), an hour-long “making-of” documentary, six deleted scenes with optional commentary (12 min.), behind-the-scenes featurettes on two of the deleted scenes (6 min. total), a three-minute gag reel (3 min.), the “Jamie Smiles” music video, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a so-so comedy.] (J. Shannon)