Friends With Benefits/No Strings Attached Similarities Revealed in Mash-up Trailer
Posted 07.02.11 by Ryan
Sony Pictures' July comedy Friends With Benefits explores what happens when two attractive friends (Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis) decide to see if they can transfer their friendship into a physical relationship without the emotional burdens that come with it. If that sounds familiar to you, that's because it's the exact same plot as Paramount Pictures' romantic comedy No Strings Attached with Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman.
This wouldn't be the first time two seemingly identical movies were made by different studios, but, besides storyline, are the two movies that similar? The two movies are tested in a mash-up trailer by Blind Movie Critic (via Entertainment Weekly) that shows the similarities go beyond the plot, and include supporting characters, emotional arcs, jokes, and even camera angles.
They say that time heals all wounds, and that work in Friends With Benefits' favor. No Strings Attached was critically bashed when it opened in January, but, and here's where it counts, the movie scored with audiences, opening in first place, and earning $147 million worldwide on a $25 million budget.
While seven months separate the two movies, No Strings Attached arrived on DVD and Blu-Ray on May 10th, giving Friends With Benefits more than two months until its July 22nd release date. Hopefully, for the sake of Timberlake, Kunis, and director Will Gluck (Easy A), that will be enough time for movie audiences to get ready to watch another version of the same movie.