If you've done some digging around here, you know that I hold super-reader Joel in high regard. Not only is he gracious enough to be regular reader of this blog, and a number of yours, he also possesses a wealth of cinematic knowledge. Whenever I have blogathons, Joel is happy to participate. Since he doesn't have a blog of his own, I have no problem at all turning mine over to him to impart his wisdom on us.
Before I do that today, I have to start with an apology to him.
Here's your peek behind the curtain.
Over the last year or so, due to the amount of spam that was showing up in the comment section, I had to change the settings on my blog so that I would have to approve all comments before they published. Joel commented on my entry in this year's Against the Crowd. Instead of clicking 'publish,' I accidentally clicked 'delete.' Sigh.
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| I'm sorry, Joel. |
I feel better, having gotten that off my chest. Now, I can turn things over to Joel so he can go against the crowd.
Why, Why, WHY do I not trust my own instincts when I see previews of films and think “That looks stupid” or “That’s gotta be garbage!”?
No. Instead I’ll listen to word of mouth and think “How bad could it be?”
In the case of Bridesmaid…horrendously so! COARSE! VULGAR!! GHASTLY!!! Are the nicest words that come to mind when I hear this thing mentioned.
Selfish, irresponsible, child-woman Annie (Kristen Wiig) is jealous when her friend Lillian (Maya Rudolph) isn't bright enough to see that a superficial new friend, Helen (Rose Byrne), is trying to push her lifelong friend out of the way when both are asked to be bridesmaids at her wedding. Add in her other unbelievably uncouth, boorish acquaintances and supposed hilarity ensues, or not, as was my case.
For two incredibly painful hours we watch this group of idiots do stupid, gross things that would send any sensible person running in the opposite direction as fast as their feet could carry them. The so called mirth included hallucinations from purposeful doping of one of the characters and mass diarrhea! EWWWWW!!!!
After suffering through this trash someone said it was great because the women were unfettered by convention and acting just like men. Maybe it’s just me but being an equal opportunity dirtbag is not an inspirational concept!
At most times I am a Melissa McCarthy fan and she is a big enough talent to make a little something of a terrible part but not enough to save this turkey. How she was nominated for an Oscar will remain beyond my comprehension forever.
Most painful for me was how sad I was to see Jill Clayburgh, a huge star in my teens, as Wiig’s mother obviously ill-her voice ravaged by disease, wrapping up her film career in this sorry piece of garbage. She passed away from leukemia before the film’s release.
The only upside I can find to having seen this is that I didn’t make the mistake of paying good money to see it in the movie theater!!! Ugh!
Okay right from the top this is not “great art” strewn with “important messages,” but with that title were you really expecting it to be? If you want that, go watch a three hour Ingmar Bergman film, but if you want a breezy, silly comedy with good performances and a snappy pace then this is for you.
Seventeen year old Sue Ellen (Swell) Crandall (Christina Applegate) can’t go to Europe with her friends because her mother is heading to her boyfriend’s Australian sheep ranch. Swell thinks she is going to spend the summer looking after her four younger siblings, pothead Kenny (Keith Coogan), flirty Zach (Christopher Pettiet), tomboy Melissa (Danielle Harris) and TV obsessed Walter (Robert Hy Gorman) though she plans to pretty much let them look after each other while she hits the beach. To her surprise however her mother has hired an ancient seemingly sweet old lady, Mrs. Sturak (Eda Reiss Merin) to look after them. Mama hits the road and Mrs. Sturak turns into a raging termagant making the children’s lives a misery with rules and meanness. They are just about to tell her off when they discover she’s dropped dead from a heart attack. What to do?
Why put her in a trunk, leave it on the doorstep of a funeral home with a note that says “Nice Old Lady Inside” and enjoy the rest of the summer…..or so they think. Having accidentally left the money Mom had given to the wicked babysitter on her they find themselves short on funds and have to devise a way to get through the next couple of months!
Swell loses the toss with stoner Kenny and heads off to work. Finding the going tough at first (her first job is at fast food joint, Clown Dog) she bluffs her way into a job as an Executive Administrative Assistant to ditzy clothing manufacturer Rose (a delightful Joanna Cassidy) by falsifying her resume. Immediately engendering the animosity of sour faced Carolyn (Jayne Brook) who was supposed to have the job (and happens to be the sister of Brian (Josh Charles) the boy Swell likes) and mail clerk Bruce (David Duchovny) who she puts in his place, she has to do some fancy stepping to maintain the ruse. It doesn’t help that Rose’s paramour, Gus (John Getz) a fellow exec and slimy creep is putting the moves on Swell.
However it turns out that Swell has a gift for the job and all is going well until Walter decides to dip into Swell’s purse and use the petty cash money for a brand new ultra-deluxe entertainment center. A sudden business crisis put all of them in the hot seat and the gang pull together to come up with a solution!
It helps a great deal that the cast is headed by two very good actresses. Christina Applegate as Sue Ellen the young teen who finds out she is more resourceful than she realized and the marvelous Joanna Cassidy as (I’m right on top of that!) Rose, her new boss carry the movie on their shoulders easily. Keith Coogan is also a lot of fun as stoner brother Kenny who belatedly grows up.
Besides the good performances, the film is filled with some amusing lines-when the kids car is stolen early on by some drag queens one character says to call the police and the other responds "What are we going to tell them? Liza Minnelli stole our Buick!", enjoyable situations and a flashback to 90's fashion.
A pleasant diversion but again don't expect anything high toned and you'll enjoy the ride and end up with a smile on your face.
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