Parents' Guide to Ticket to Paradise

Movie PG-13 2022 104 minutes
Ticket to Paradise: Movie Poster

Common Sense Media Review

Sandie Angulo Chen By Sandie Angulo Chen , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 13+

Clooney and Roberts elevate cute, booze-filled romcom.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 13+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

age 10+

Based on 7 parent reviews

age 12+

Based on 11 kid reviews

What's the Story?

In TICKET TO PARADISE, divorced art curator Georgia (Julia Roberts) and architect David (George Clooney) have spent two decades dealing with resentment and recrimination after their ill-fated five-year marriage. When their adult daughter, Lily (Kaitlyn Dever), writes from her law-school graduation trip to Bali to tell her parents that she's getting married in four days to a man named Gede (Maxime Bouttier) whom she just met, the conflict-prone, competitive exes fly to paradise to stop her. Once in Bali, David and Georgia agree to pretend they're supportive but in reality try to sabotage the young couple's traditional Balinese nuptials. As the days tick by, the exes discover that manipulating their daughter has brought them together more than they anticipated.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say ( 7 ):
Kids say ( 11 ):

Clooney and Roberts bring their nearly irresistible charm to this banter-filled enemies-to-lovers romcom. Ticket to Paradise marks the superstars' fifth big-screen collaboration; it's unlikely to rank above the Ocean's films for most fans, but it will intrigue moviegoers hoping to see them in a romcom together. While the "young love" part of the storyline is of the insta-love variety -- the scene where Gede first meets Lily is almost laughably obvious -- the relationship between David and Georgia coasts on the gravitas of the stars' chemistry. It's not the funny, sizzling, sexy coupledom that fans might hope for, but there's an undeniable delight in watching the two appealing actors on screen together. Billie Lourd provides notable comic-relief as Lily's supportive (and boozy) best friend, and Lucas Bravo is particularly funny as Georgia's overly adoring younger French boyfriend, who happens to be the pilot on the flight from Chicago to Bali.

The movie's setting is also utterly gorgeous. Director Ol Parker, working from a screenplay by Daniel Pipski, captures the place and the people -- albeit primarily as a lovely background for these American sweethearts. There's a seemingly respectful nod to Balinese marital customs, as well as a large Indonesian supporting cast playing Gede's family (although only his on-screen parents and sister get many lines). But the story is told from the gaze of tourists, so there's lots of exposition to explain the different ceremonies -- and even more moments of ecotourist sightseeing, including hiking, swimming with dolphins, and hiking to different temples. All of it is accompanied by the rat-a-tat-tat of Clooney and Roberts' sniping, sometimes playfully, sometimes angrily, but always headed to the inevitability of these two movie stars having a ball together.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how Ticket to Paradise plays into romcom conventions. What do movies in this genre often have in common? How does this one compare to others you've seen?

  • Do you consider anyone in the movie a role model? What character strengths do they demonstrate?

  • There's lots of drinking in the movie. Does the alcohol use have any consequences? Why does that matter?

  • How was comedic violence used in this movie? Does "funny" violence impact viewers differently than more serious violence?

Movie Details

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Ticket to Paradise: Movie Poster

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