Critics Scoreboard
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Average Critic Score:
47
(28 sources)
47
(28 sources)
-
83
Entertainment Weekly
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. Read Full Review » -
75
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70
-
70
-
70
Village Voice
A refreshingly mean-spirited breeze through both the holiday movie and romantic-comedy checklists. Read Full Review » -
63
USA Today
Still, there are some funny surprises, from skewering overdone Christmas decorations to casting Chris Klein as a creep. Read Full Review » -
63
Boston Globe
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. Read Full Review » -
63
-
63
Philadelphia Inquirer
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. Read Full Review » -
60
Empire
Funnier than it has any right to be, thanks to Reynolds' charisma and Faris' bubbleheaded blonde. Read Full Review » -
60
Film Threat
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? Read Full Review » -
58
Baltimore Sun
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. Read Full Review » -
50
Miami Herald
This is superficial entertainment to say the least. But if you're looking for laughs, then Just Friends is just fine. Read Full Review » -
50
Chicago Tribune
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. Read Full Review » -
50
Chicago Reader
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. Read Full Review » -
50
Dallas Observer
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. Read Full Review » -
50
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42
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Although set 10 years after high school graduation, Just Friends is a dumb teen comedy. Read Full Review » -
40
The Onion (A.V. Club)
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. Read Full Review » -
40
Los Angeles Times
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. Read Full Review » -
38
New York Daily News
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. Read Full Review » -
38
New York Post
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. Read Full Review » -
38
TV Guide
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. Read Full Review » -
30
The New York Times
Overcompensates for its sloppiness with loud, knockabout farce. Read Full Review » -
30
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30
Austin Chronicle
The script, by Adam "Tex" Vegas, ricochets between over-earnest romantic comedy staples and a noticeable lack of any consistent tone for Reynolds' character. Read Full Review » -
25
ReelViews
There are bad movies and annoying movies, and this one contains elements of both. Read Full Review » -
25
Chicago Sun-Times
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. Read Full Review »
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