starring: george clooney, julia roberts, kaitlyn dever, and maxime bouttier

REVIEWER: lyall carter

A divorced couple that teams up and travels to Bali to stop their daughter from making the same mistake they think they made 25 years ago.

Bitter exes David (George Clooney) and Georgia (Julia Roberts) find themselves on a shared mission to stop their lovestruck daughter from making the same mistake they once made - getting married too young and too quickly. The pair agree to “call a truce” with one another to successfully trick their daughter (played by Kaitlyn Dever) into dumping her fiancé, who she met recently in Bali, before she impulsively marries him. 

Writer/director Ol Parker of Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again and The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel fame has an incredible knack of taking a group of beloved Hollywood stars, popping them all in an exotic location, and exploring love and life in a light yet heartfelt flick. 

Ticket to Paradise is an undemanding tale which strikes all the recognizable notes of a rom-com: the will they, won’t they pull of the narrative, people falling into hilarious and haphazard circumstances, with a few quirky characters along the way. But Parker manages to accompany this with some neat character development, exploring the reasons why David and Georgia’s marriage not only failed but why there is so much animosity between them. 

While some may argue that there isn’t a lot of originality to be found in the Ticket to Paradise tale, that doesn’t stop it in the slightest from being uplifting in its simplicity, transporting you from reality to an island cinematic paradise. I took my parents-in-law (I know, I win in-law of the year) and they thoroughly enjoyed it too. 

While Parker is used to working with some well known and beloved acting legends, he has arguably the biggest stars this time around in Clooney and Roberts, sharing the screen for the first time since the 2016 thriller Money Monster. And they make Ticket to Paradise with a sizzling chemistry, hilarious banter, and a whole lot of heart. 

With Clooney and Roberts bringing sizzling chemistry and hilarious banter, Ticket to Paradise is a breezy, undemanding tale that will transport you from reality to an island cinematic paradise.