Just Go With It

A womanizing plastic surgeon (Adam Sandler) avoids commitment by pretending to be married; when he falls in love for real, he persuades his assistant (Jennifer Aniston) to pose as his wife so they can “divorce” and set him free for his new girlfriend (Brooklyn Decker). Sandler does to Cactus Flower (1969) what he did to Mr. Deeds, and once again the result isn’t pretty; this time blame director Dennis Dugan and writers Allan Loeb and Timothy Dowling (and, of course, Sandler himself). Aniston’s professionalism and personal appeal drag her surroundings up to a “fair” rating, but she’s only slumming, giving the movie a level of class it doesn’t share or deserve. Ditto for Nicole Kidman as Aniston’s college nemesis, tarted up like a mortician’s mistake and taking a sporting fling at comedy.