What Other Couples Do (2013)

I wanted to but couldn't!

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Personally I truly enjoyed the movie, as each couple reminded of friends. The four couples are at a different point in their lives: one couple is childless, one has been married a while and has two young children, one of the couples is trying to get pregnant, and another has a young son and is going through a divorce. The movie touches on many different topics that couples talk about in real life, including sex. When the men and women hang out away from each other, the conversations get more interesting, especially when each camp talks about their spouses. Things are disclosed that may have the audience scratching their heads, wondering if that's what's going on in their own relationship. Like, when the women tell their girlfriend her husband is amazing, she says she would never reveal that to him, because she's afraid it'd give him too much power! And when the women talk about their sex lives, you sigh in relief, knowing it's not just you experiencing what they describe. Fun is poked at both genders and everyone in the group even rips on themselves a bit, making the characters genuine and fun to watch. They all decided to spend the night, which means they can drink more. To make it even more interesting, Michelle suggests they play Seven Minutes in Heaven, in which each person draws a name and gets to spend seven minutes in a closet with that person, kissing or doing whatever they want. A few are reluctant, but eventually they end up going along with it, since everyone else is. To insure no one discusses the game afterward, they all sign an agreement. When they start to play, it's a bit nerve-wracking for them, wondering who they will be matched up with and what will happen in the closet. While in the closet, some talk, some get right to the making out, and some find it comfortable and safe enough to disclose personal details about their relationships. Overall, the movie is quite entertaining due to the excellent acting, intriguing story, and the interesting and comical dialogue, which includes lines like, "Rich people have problems, too. They have to worry about guests ejaculating on their wallpaper." If you're married, engaged, divorced you definitely will enjoy this movie!

Hated everything about it except acting crew being cute. Developed the story fairly well but half way through the movie it started to get annoying and unreasonable. It ended just horrible though. "I want to get you back although I both cheated on you and stranded you and our child" but it's fine, just tense up! "sorry if you didn't fully enjoy yourself when you were cheating on me", a smile, and yeah, let's kiss!!! He's successful, so he has to take lots of pills because he can't control the pressure being successful and wealthy has towards him. OMG I cannot believe I watched it fully. Antonio Banderas quote was the cherry on top of this cake. Well done Ms. Daniels, well done. On top of the cherry, the production was even worse. Especially the sound. very poor editing job Mr. Barnoski! So many editing assitantship in your resume but it's what you do as an editor. Horrendous cuts, noise on the sound, etc. The last two Sequences (night after making out and morning) can become the two worst sequence of all times. Easily.

Like some others I found this while flipping through the available Amazon Prime videos... and I also found it delightful and insightful as I've had some of those conversations, too.My kissing games, unfortunately, never ended with sex with my spouse, nor reconciliation. One would think that I would have been able to handle monogamy on the third attempt.I didn't know what to expect from this movie, but I guess that I found it highly personal and terribly insightful. I've had those friends and, with a little too much wine, had the friend's wives that wanted me, too. Sometimes it was okay, but sometimes friendships and marriages were destroyed.The screenplay, the acting and the direction is brilliant. And if you're in that 32-34 age group you'll recognize yourself in many of the characters. It's a shame that this wasn't a hit film... so much more than "The Big Chill." More realistic. More personal.Ah, let the spoilers begin!As wayward and screwed up as it may sound, I think that Bree is the most enlightened of any other single character. Her observation that "little white lies" can keep monogamous relationships afloat is spot-on. Looking back, had I kept many things unsaid I think that my relationships may have lasted longer, at least. I was too quick to be honest, too fast to share intimacies and it's only now that I realize that honesty in a relationship needs to be tempered, that holding back and telling the white lies is exactly what's required in a relationship.Ryan and Bree have, it seems, the best marriage of the lot. And maybe Bree's observance is the lesson that should be taken away from the movie, the thing to be pondered.Those of us of a certain age know these couples, and we've heard the dialogue from others. We know the woman who feels overwhelmed by motherhood and, yet, holds her children dear. She wants acknowledgment and appreciation and some help in parenting. And she really is the one who could be open for anything.We know the woman who is belittled, whose husband lacks respect for the end of the bargain that she maintains. We feel so sorry for her each time her spouse is dismissive.We know the Gingers, and how much they have been hurt and the Ginger portrayed in the film really isn't like the Ginger that we know - she wouldn't take her cheating husband back so quickly, particularly throwing a 10-year-old son into the mix: She would be careful so that her son would realize that cheating and leaving is not just something that men do.The women are the most interesting characters, slightly stereotypical but with their twists. Brad is the least interesting character; followed by the equally boring Chris. Josh could be an obsessive Silicon Valley type, but he's an obsessive L.A. type and even the guy with the most screen time - Dave - is a vague shadow. Everyone wants to be Ryan although all of the women want Dave (for reasons that I can't fathom).We know the women better than we know the couples because the men aren't too well represented here. That's okay, though. It's certainly possible that the women are more interesting than their spouses. Or that we know Michelle but have trouble identifying with Ryan, a stand-up comic(?).Two things you should know before watching this movie:The photo that is in place where a poster or DVD cover might go insinuates that there's a lot of sex in the film. And the 'also liked' films are for trashy sex films. No sex here, no nudity, nothing. Not a proverbial 'chick flick' but more of a couples film. Maybe. Who am I to judge?You may not find the observation by Bree to be as thought-provoking as I did. I've never been in a long-term relationship. I only learned recently that honesty is disastrous for marriages. Find your wife's co-worker hot? Don't tell your wife! That mind-blowing sex that you had with a previous love? The same things that you'd like your wife to try? Keep it to yourself.Lie when sex is the subject. Lie when you find Matt Damon attractive. Small white lies really aren't necessary, but maybe a little less honesty would be good? I'm the poster boy for the schlub thinking that honesty and intimacy were good things. My (last) ex-wife told me of a type of sex that she had with an old boyfriend - someone that she still socialized with and someone who became my friend, too. She didn't ask for a re-enactment, and my approach would have been very different than that which she experienced. I was baffled by what she shared. She wasn't the honest type, and I only found out years later that she would have found my approach strange and repugnant.It's possible that this film has sex at the center. I'll need to think on that - maybe watch the movie again. Dave and Michelle seem to solve their problems with a short conversation and a night of sex - I found that ludicrous, one of two misguided scenarios in the film.I highly recommend this movie.

Fifteen minutes into the movie and I wanted to turned it off, but then decided to continue. What turned me off initially was the appearing "falkeness" of the characters. Then I decided it was intentional, it was a sarcastic portrayal of an average American couple (s) . An intentional exaggeration. Their empty conversations and dialogues were dismal and their bickering annoying, in my opinion. Then it became more interesting as the movie progressed. Some of the male actors were miscast. None of them looked much older than 26 years old Brad, however they were talking about themselves as if they were over 40 or approaching. The acting was just OK.