RICKY STANICKY

Childhood friends Dean (Zac Efron), JT (Andrew Santino), and Wes (Jermaine Fowler) create a fictional friend to take the fall for them for a Halloween prank gone wrong when they're teenagers. It works and since then, the 3 continue to use the story and name Ricky Stanicky to get out of any situations that are less than desirable for them. It's actually not a bad idea and the 3 have a solid system in place as they have 1 centralized book for writing down the many lies they've told over the years in order to not get caught in said lies. However, as JT's about to become a father and the family has a bris, JT's mother-in-law grows impatient and demands to see Ricky as she's beginning to grow suspicious about his authenticity. The 3 bump into Rod Rimestead (John Cena) in Atlantic City. Rod's a stage performer, actor, an alcoholic who's down on his luck and could use the money and the company. However, Rod/Ricky hits it off famously with everyone at the party, including the prying mother-in-law and now the guys are having difficulty getting Rod/Ricky out of their lives for good. Again, the story works, has some funny moments, and has a heartfelt message at the end of the day. Cena by far shines as Rod, with his outlandish personality as Ricky who's given a lot of freedom to make the character unique, which he succeeds in. Worth a watch for Prime members. 6/10