What Happens in Vegas

**1/2 Stars

After seeing hundreds and hundreds of romantic-comedies in my almost twenty year life, I have always been baffled as to how films like What Happens in Vegas can get made. It has the same recurring plotlines like any other romantic-comedy: two people somehow meet through an event that forces them to see each other constantly, then one soon falls for the other, and then he or she has to prove their love. All of these are the same gimmicks with slightly different faces and scenarios. So how do films like this still work? Simple, because the human race can and always will believe in the existence of love. Vegas is no different than anything you've seen before, but because love stories are universal, they can still work, regardless of when and where it takes place.

This particular story starts off with Joy McNally (Cameron Diaz) and Jack Fuller (Ashton Kutcher) dealing with a certain relationship problem. When Joy is dumped by her fiancé and Jack is fired by his own father, both decide to head to Sin City to forget their problems and enjoy a night on the town. The two meet by accidentally being booked in the same room. Rob Corddry plays Hater, a lawyer and best bud of Jack. The two convince Joy and her friend Tipper (Lake Bell) to have a drink with them. One drink turns into two, which turns into five, which turns into ten, which turns into a sloppy-blackout marriage.

They wake up, agree for an annulment, and part their separate ways. But before they do, Jack drops Joy's quarter in a slot machine only to win $3 million dollars. In order to get the money, they have to work on their marriage for six months, only to give the film a plot. Joy moves into Jack's apartment, where all hell brakes loose. The two must try to find ways to see who will give up and lose the money.

The film relies on Diaz and Kutcher's ability to somehow act completely annoying and self-absorbed, yet we still root for the final endgame. If you've seen any romantic-comedy before or basically any film before, then you know exactly where What Happens in Vegas is going. It teeters on the edge of failure throughout the entire process, but it manages to carry its own weight across the finish line, even if that means stumbling through.