Bridesmaids (Paul Feig, 2011)

[number8]

nsUEd2cUIqo

It got great reviews at SXSW. I'm looking forward to it. Fuck Hangover 2.

[Mara]

..they even have a Zach Galifianakis chick.

It's Melissa McCarthy, whom I've always really liked, even though she's never been in any particularly good projects. She was funny in the trailer.

Honestly, this isn't my kind of movie at all, but the cast is just so good. I may have to see it.

[number8]

Honestly, I just want Paul Feig to redeem himself at the movies. His last feature was unfortunate.

[number8]

I see the poster on the subway everyday, and Rose Byrne on it always gives me a stir.

http://bitcast-r.v1.iad1.bitgravity.com/slashfilm/wp/wp-content/images/ZZ44D259F8.jpg

[Dukefrukem]

It does look way more promising than all three of the most recently posted R-rated comedy films.

[Spinal]

I see Ellie Kemper. Therefore, I will see this movie.

[Mara]

I see Ellie Kemper. Therefore, I will see this movie.

And Jon Hamm, who was Ellie Kemper's high school drama teacher. Which still strikes me as funny.

[Spinal]

And Jon Hamm, who was Ellie Kemper's high school drama teacher. Which still strikes me as funny.

Only a 10-year age difference between the two. Hmmm.

[Wryan]

Looks cute and funny. Nice seeing a toned-down Wiig, too. Relatively.

[NickGlass]

I see the poster on the subway everyday, and Rose Byrne on it always gives me a stir.

http://bitcast-r.v1.iad1.bitgravity.com/slashfilm/wp/wp-content/images/ZZ44D259F8.jpg

Those pull quotes are so condescending.

"We know the main ensemble is made up of women, but they're funny--we promise!"

[Mara]

Excellent reviews so far.

I may actually see this. I'm not generally one for scatological humor, but I'm so relieved to see a comedy that doesn't think women are idiots.

[Spinal]

I dunno. The reviews I read were positive, but made me less interested in seeing the movie.

[MadMan]

This could be funny. I'll give it a chance.

[Pop Trash]

This has to be better than The Hangover.

[Dukefrukem]

This has to be better than The Hangover.

and Hangover Part 2.

[DavidSeven]

It seems odd that this movie is listed at over two hours long.

[eternity]

It seems odd that this movie is listed at over two hours long.
Apatow.

[Derek]

Apatow.

So it'll be funny through 40 minutes, start wearing out welcome at 90 minutes and spend the last 30+ minutes making me wonder why in god's name it's still going.

Still gonna see it.

[Pop Trash]

I have a feeling critics will like this more than auds. They are doing their best to promote this as The Hangover: With Chicks, but the humor is too specific and has too much pathos. Needless to say, I think this is a much better film than The Hangover for those very reasons. Other than the [spoiler alert I guess] Hollywood Happy Ending (T.M.), the film often feels closer to Sideways or any of the other Apatow flicks than The Hangover. Also, Feig's direction is pretty flat/route, but the acting and writing are tip-top.

[Raiders]

I think it is impossible to overpraise Kristen Wiig's performance in this film. Without her, there is little chance this film can distinguish itself from other Apatow productions outside the twist of being comprised of women and not men. But with her, there is a demented pathos that makes the film feel very personal and specific and she creates such a remarkably compelling character who you can't help but want to watch and be mesmerized by for all two hours. It's an astonishing piece of physical comedy that manages to do so without ever having to really devolve into slapstick--which it does on many occasions, but even these scenes are handled well (there is a grace to these ladies that the men have never found--just watch how Rudolph plays her unfortunate public indecency). The film manages to avoid the cliche of dealing with immaturity forced into a "real" situation but rather deals with a grown, intelligent woman forced to act immature out of sheer demented inability to cope or find any actual intelligent response to the situation. Such an example would be the complete meltdown at the wedding shower where you can just feel the anger rise to a point when adult behavior becomes impossible and Wiig's subsequent quirk-out feels almost natural even as it continues to escalate.

Sure, it goes on too long and the love story side-plot is never really very interesting (though the cop character is better sketched than I would have thought), but in the end it's a delightfully quirky film, not a loud or obnoxious comedy but one that works almost exclusively on the brilliant awkwardness of its star and plays scenes almost beyond the breaking point and into a kind of surreal performance art that maximizes the laughs and the squirms. I dare anyone not to marvel at Wiig's drugged, drunken unruliness on an airplane that is so elegantly funny without ever once having to become loud, obnoxious or mug the camera. It's a truly wonderful sight to behold.

[Watashi]

I haven't seen this film yet but I'm tired of Apatow's trademark gross-out humor. Excessive vomit/poop jokes are just not funny no matter if it's done by an all-male cast or all-female cast.

[Raiders]

I haven't seen this film yet but I'm tired of Apatow's trademark gross-out humor. Excessive vomit/poop jokes are just not funny no matter if it's done by an all-male cast or all-female cast.

Vomit/poop does play a very pivotal role in one scene (it's in all the trailers), though the scene itself isn't really a "poop joke" and I can't think of almost any other instance of them in the film. It's raunchy to an extent, but not in the same way Seth Rogen is.

[Pop Trash]

Vomit/poop does play a very pivotal role in one scene (it's in all the trailers), though the scene itself isn't really a "poop joke" and I can't think of almost any other instance of them in the film. It's raunchy to an extent, but not in the same way Seth Rogen is.

I laughed. Humor is one of those things like attraction and sex that's hard to intellectualize. Maya Rudolph taking a dump in the middle of the street wearing a wedding dress = funny.

[number8]

Vomit/poop does play a very pivotal role in one scene (it's in all the trailers), though the scene itself isn't really a "poop joke" and I can't think of almost any other instance of them in the film. It's raunchy to an extent, but not in the same way Seth Rogen is.

If it was a different Apatow movie, the pooping would probably be the joke, but the pooping wasn't the joke here, I thought. The joke of the scene is the cliche in all wedding movies in which the dress gets ruined. This movie just takes that premise farther than most of those wedding romcoms are willing to go. The movie does this a lot to wedding movie cliches. That's why it's funny to me. It's awkward humor (uh oh, I'm ruining something expensive and sacred) that just turns into absurd humor (taking a shit in the middle of a busy street).

Plus, it led to my favorite exchange later in the movie:

"And we didn't get food poisoning from that Brazilian restaurant."
"No, we did."
"No, we didn't."
"Yes. Yes, we did. I shit my pants."

[Mara]

I haven't seen this film yet but I'm tired of Apatow's trademark gross-out humor. Excessive vomit/poop jokes are just not funny no matter if it's done by an all-male cast or all-female cast.

I agree with this, as I've never found bodily humor very amusing. But it seems like this film has more going than that.

I'm going to see it at some point.

[Henry Gale]

Is Apatow's name really synonymous with gross-out humour? I can think of several scenes in the stuff he's directed, written and produced that has characters talking and teasing each other about any number of bodily fluids and whatnot, but I'm having trouble thinking of actual moments where we see any of those things, especially in ways that are played for big laughs. The closest I can think of is in Knocked Up when Paul Rudd walks in on Leslie Mann peeing on the pregnancy test, as well as quick vomiting scenes in Superbad and 40-Year-Old Virgin.

Either way, I'm seeing Bridesmaids tomorrow, and I wouldn't be surprised if I find the wedding dress scene everyone has been pointing out to be out of place too, but I doubt it'll be a make-or-break sequence for my overall enjoyment of the movie.

[Watashi]

This film is okay. I think the ridiculous amount of critical praise (best comedy of the past 10 years? WTF?) is out of hand just because it's finally being delivered by an all female cast. Women making jokes out of menstruating, blow jobs, and other "womanly" activities are just the flipside of guys doing jokes about masturbation, sex, etc. Wiig is terrific, but I just don't really buy her arc. She's pretty darn unlikeable from beginning to end. This film suffers from being overlong (why is this 2+ hours?) and when it stops to have its heartfelt moments, it just feels forced. The plane sequence went on way too long. Seeing Wiig drunk is humorous the first time. We don't need to see it for a third time.

I wanted more John Hamm and the Pixar-obsessed redhead.

[Spinal]

menstruating, blow jobs, and other "womanly" activities

:lol:

[Raiders]

This film is okay. I think the ridiculous amount of critical praise (best comedy of the past 10 years? WTF?) is out of hand just because it's finally being delivered by an all female cast.

Or because it is that funny. I'mma go with that one.


Women making jokes out of menstruating, blow jobs, and other "womanly" activities are just the flipside of guys doing jokes about masturbation, sex, etc.

Yes, but that doesn't really constitute the majority of the humor in the film. In fact, just about all my favorite moments have nothing to do with any of that stuff.


Wiig is terrific, but I just don't really buy her arc. She's pretty darn unlikeable from beginning to end.

I would call it "realistic" or believable myself, which is what makes her performance so outstanding. She doesn't make her character cutesy to win sympathy; she's neurotic and downright irritating some of the time.


This film suffers from being overlong (why is this 2+ hours?) and when it stops to have its heartfelt moments, it just feels forced.

This is true.


The plane sequence went on way too long. Seeing Wiig drunk is humorous the first time. We don't need to see it for a third time.

I stated it before, but the absurdity of it and how long it goes for is actually something I loved. Normally I think you would be right, that it pushes the joke too long, but throughout the film scenes exist almost a few beats longer than expected and the resulting unease is precisely what they were going for I think. It's not the quick laugh, but the continuous build that finally topples into anarchy, just like the speeches, the wedding dresses and the reckless driving. There are no punchlines and it isn't really "quotable." It's a deliberate form of comedy that I ate up.


I wanted more John Hamm and the Pixar-obsessed redhead.

Hamm was perfect as an occasional presence. The second part doesn't surprise me.

[origami_mustache]

shit is funneez ya'll

[eternity]

So it'll be funny through 40 minutes, start wearing out welcome at 90 minutes and spend the last 30+ minutes making me wonder why in god's name it's still going.

Still gonna see it....that's a spot-on review of Bridesmaids, actually.

[eternity]

That said, I'm pretty sure I liked the film most when some scenes went on for so long, I felt that Quentin Tarantino had a hand in directing them. That big long toast near the beginning and the drunken plane sequence got stale and then just kept going and going after that, making them circle back to being really, REALLY funny.

[Henry Gale]

I saw the movie last night and I can't say I have too many problems with it. It made me laugh consistently and kept a nice, fun balance of most of its characters (except for maybe Ellie Kemper and Wendi McLendon-Covey, who don't seem to have any dialogue or comedic function after the plane sequence is over), all the actors from the lead bridesmaids to Jon Hamm and Chris O'Dowd to the people we only see for a scene or two, they all nail it, and Wiig is fantastic on her own if only the fact that her performance (and the way she wrote the character) never employ cheap attempts to make you feel sorry for her, despite all of the terrible things she's put through, whether they're her own fault or not. I think it may be that distinction all on its own that automatically puts this movie on a different rhythm than other "chick flicks". The movie is more or less about her having to overcome the fact that her life isn't a fairy tale that'll resolve itself nicely thanks to the other people in her life. That's not to say this is that type of story played entirely for real, but since it isn't, it can also have its comedy go in the more absurd directions to compliment and contrast the stuff that's actually genuine and relatable.

Maybe it's just gotten to the point of being spoiled that at least once a year a certain circle of people with great comic sensibilities are rounded up by Judd Apatow to deliver one or more really enjoyable comedies that eventually hold up over time and multiple viewings, and maybe Bridesmaids comes at a point in that consistent output that won't allow me to really appreciate it fully until years later, but I'll still say that as of right now, I wouldn't be surprised if this is the funniest movie of the summer and something I enjoy even more down the line. Though I will say, for once I'm actually looking forward to an extended/unrated version of something, because there really are a ton of funny scenes from even the trailers for this that are nowhere to be seen in the final film.

A strong three asterisks.

[D_Davis]

Are there lots of blow jobs in this movie?

[Henry Gale]

Are there lots of blow jobs in this movie?

I mean, there's two scenes where they're discussed, one early in the movie between Wiig and Rudolph and one later on with Jon Hamm. The first one is the two of them kidding around, the second starts as an actual invitation for one from Hamm to Wiig, but then he decides to pretend like it was a joke once she refuses. Both scenes almost seem comedically self-aware.

It's strange because I realize mostly with movies like this, Knocked Up and Funny People, so many of the jokes stem from the characters actually trying to be funny and succeeding in a way that works as a gag for the audience too. I feel like in other comedies, especially broader ones, that's the sort of thing that can kill scenes. An example could be in Step Brothers when they're presenting their "Boats N Hoes" video, it almost stops being funny once Adam Scott's villainous brother character goes "Oh, this is hilarious!", because we almost feel like we're on the same side of the joke as him. I think it's just the more realistic a comedy plays its characters and situations, the more accepting I feel to the characters being able to have a sense of humour. Luckily Bridesmaids plays a lot of itself for real, which makes it even funnier when things become ridiculous.

[number8]

Better late than never, I guess. Had a hard time writing what I wanted to say about this one.

http://www.justpressplay.net/reviews/7858-bridesmaids.html

[Mara]

..hard-to-control selfishness that’s specifically character-based, followed up upon and explored—rather than a default female trait.

THIS is the crux of the matter, I think. I have no problem with watching films about deeply flawed characters-- that's just good writing-- but I have a huge problem with those flaws getting extrapolated into observations about everyone of a certain gender, or belief system, or race, or anything else.

I am going to see this, but my schedule's been crazy. Maybe next week.

[number8]

I would be interested in what you think.

[DavidSeven]

This was pretty great. It did end up being too long, and I wish it had a more resonant ending, but those are minor quibbles. Wiig's performance might be good enough to warrant awards consideration. Is there any talk of that? The dramatic notes she hits are just money. Her Annie will end up being one of the most fully realized female characters of the year. No question.

[Mara]

I think I just have to admit that this isn't... really... my type of movie. I can appreciate it, I can think "This is funny" but I don't laugh. I'm glad it was less gross than I was expecting, and the focus on the female relationships was intriguing, but... it just didn't really resonate with me.

The ending, with the band and the dancing and the bashful date showing up to take our heroine home, was straight out of every horrible teen film from the nineties, and come on. This movie was better than that.

[Mara]

Also, it bothered me that twice people said "I shit my pants" because I was always taught that the past tense of "shit" is "shat," but you know what? Some googling is turning up intense debate on the subject.

What did we do without the internet?

[Mara]

I'm feeling kindlier towards this film after sleeping on it.

I think one of the problems I had was a personal one: ever since I was a child, I can't stand seeing someone humiliated on screen. I can't laugh at it. I have a high-anxiety reaction, and I blush and squirm. So scenes like the wedding toast, the airplane, the bridal shower, etc. were just torturous to watch.

However, the sequence where Annie and Helen do crazy car things to get Rhodes' attention was really funny for me, simply because Annie is refusing to be humiliated by it.

Mostly, I feel like the film is somewhat less than the whole of its parts. Certain scenes were genuinely sad, like when Annie makes that beautiful cupcake and then eats it. Others had great physical comedy, like the scene where Megan bites Annie on the butt. But I'm not sure that overall it was really sad, or really funny, or really engaging.

I'm also a little disappointed that this wasn't more of an ensemble comedy, which is what I expected from the title, trailer, and poster. I would have loved to see a little more from Ellie Kemper, etc.

[number8]

But I thought you were a fan of the British Office.

[Raiders]

But I thought you were a fan of the British Office.

Mara's clearly sexist.

[Mara]

But I thought you were a fan of the British Office.

I am a fan, but it's really hard to watch. Sometimes I have to cover my eyes.

The worst-- the absolute worst-- is when they pull down the pants of one of the office workers. I fast forward through that scene every time.

[[ETM]]

Also, it bothered me that twice people said "I shit my pants" because I was always taught that the past tense of "shit" is "shat," but you know what? Some googling is turning up intense debate on the subject.

What did we do without the internet?

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_IiiPZUuoE1o/S8uAntW5DMI/AAAAAAAAAPs/aOC9XRex4_g/s1600/Shat+in+a+Cup.jpg

[Mara]

Perhaps I'm coming off as more negative on the film than I actually am. I expected to like it about 8/10, and I think I liked it about 6.5/10.

[number8]

I am a fan, but it's really hard to watch. Sometimes I have to cover my eyes.

Oh man, did you ever watch Extras?

[Mara]

Oh man, did you ever watch Extras?

I tried. Twice.

[Rowland]

Very funny in spots, and very sharply observed in others, but also uneven, flabby, conservative, aesthetically indifferent... so yeah, very Apatow-ish. In the end, I'd say the good narrowly outweighs the bad, especially when recalling such lovely moments as the scene where Wiig bakes herself a cupcake and how it lingers for one extra heart-breaking beat, or the female-centric nuttiness of its most inspired comedic setpieces. The last fifteen minutes are pretty lame though, and I'm pretty sure the film kinda hates overweight people.

[TGM]

I just don't really get the hype for this one. Maybe, after hearing so many good things about it, I just went in with expecting too much, but this didn't live up to any of it.

It's honestly not all that funny. All of the scenes with the chubby girl are hilarious, but other than that, it's just blah. And other than the heavy girl and the cop character, there's not a single likable person in the entire cast.

After a certain point, I just didn't care about our main characters anymore. And hell, even the movie quit caring, as some characters just randomly disappear halfway into the movie, with no resolution for them at all. Makes you wonder why they were even included in the first place.

I don't really have much else to say about it, but this is probably the biggest disappointment of the year thus far.

[Fezzik]

Saw this with TGM and I pretty much agree. Melissa McCarthy was hilarious, but outside of the plane scene, I didn't find this all that funny.

Wiig was great, but the material was very underwhelming.

[Raiders]

Wow. I thought McCarthy was probably the weakest element to the film. Well, her character at least. I laughed least at her moments.

I also think Wiig's character is meant to be pretty unlikable for most of the film and it is Wiig herself that makes the character work so darn well.

[EyesWideOpen]

Wow. I thought McCarthy was probably the weakest element to the film. Well, her character at least. I laughed least at her moments.

Same here.

[Spinal]

Got a day off tomorrow and might check this out. I feel slightly odd going to Bridesmaids by myself, but I can get over it.

[Mara]

Wow. I thought McCarthy was probably the weakest element to the film. Well, her character at least. I laughed least at her moments.

I thought she was funny, but uneven. Her character showed some interesting depth in the butt-biting scene, but that is totally abandoned for the rest of the film in favor of fat jokes.

By the way, Melissa McCarthy is quite pretty in real life. The deliberately ugged her up with the hair and the makeup.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v254/maragirl/melissamccarthy_l_2.jpg

[EyesWideOpen]

She was on Conan and said she based her looks in the film on Guy Fieri.

[Spinal]

Strange that this film succeeds despite being only occasionally funny. Only a few of the jokes really land, the movie feels way too long, and yet ... by the time it was over, I was glad that I had seen it.

I think it works because the central crisis in which Annie allows her own insecurity to destroy her life is written with insight and honesty. Some of the situations are farcical, but the pain that anchors the comedy is recognizable and authentic.

Although it's been billed as the female Hangover, I think it closer to something like an Alexander Payne film. At least when it's at its best. Kristen Wiig and Maya Rudolph clearly have an off-screen friendship that translates into on-screen chemistry. Rose Byrne finds surprising depth playing Annie's aggravatingly perfect antagonist. And Melissa McCarthy finds just the right amount of sincerity playing a role that could easily have been a disaster.

It's not exactly a laugh riot and it's not exactly revolutionary. But at the end of the day, I have to consider the film's commercial success to be some sort of progress.

[Spinal]

.... the film often feels closer to Sideways or any of the other Apatow flicks than The Hangover.

Damn it. Beat me to it. Well, nice to have confirmation, I suppose.

[Spinal]

The ending, with the band and the dancing and the bashful date showing up to take our heroine home, was straight out of every horrible teen film from the nineties, and come on. This movie was better than that.

Well, in the film's defense, I think that this is intentional. It's a part of Annie's journey. She is one to roll her eyes and scoff at the Hollywood ending. But we find out that it's because she doesn't feel like she deserves it. By battling through her insecurity and reconciling with Helen, she gets what she wants. It's important that it is Helen who is largely responsible for making it all happen. And important that it is Helen who points out "your ride is here."

[Russ]

Well, in the film's defense, I think that this is intentional. It's a part of Annie's journey. She is one to roll her eyes and scoff at the Hollywood ending. But we find out that it's because she doesn't feel like she deserves it. By battling through her insecurity and reconciling with Helen, she gets what she wants. It's important that it is Helen who is largely responsible for making it all happen. And important that it is Helen who points out "your ride is here."
Wow, that sounds pretty damn poignant.

[Pop Trash]

Damn it. Beat me to it. Well, nice to have confirmation, I suppose.
Right. She's a lot like a female version of the Miles character in Sideways.

[Bosco B Thug]

That said, I'm pretty sure I liked the film most when some scenes went on for so long, I felt that Quentin Tarantino had a hand in directing them. That big long toast near the beginning and the drunken plane sequence got stale and then just kept going and going after that, making them circle back to being really, REALLY funny. Ha, yes! The first thing I was going to post was that I felt like I was watching the Inglourious Basterds of modern comedy films (at least from the little I've seen), because a lot was just running conversations, and really funny, well-performed conversing.

Really was liking the film... up through to the wedding shower I thought it was brilliant, but the last half hour or so I feel it just started committing missteps, or at least started being much less brilliant than what came before.

Am I alone in thinking the cop was being a dick? With the constant baking talk? Then holding a grudge for so long when, hey, um, you were kind of jabbing at this wound?

But most importantly, I thought it was a consistently very funny movie. I was dying during the toasting scene... don't remember LMAOing so hard in the theater since the midget boxing scene in Bad Santa.

[eternity]

He's an accidental dick. A charming dick. A dick who doesn't quite get it, but since it's so obvious that he doesn't, it's okay. Plus, he says "aboot". It's adorable.

[Bosco B Thug]

He's an accidental dick. A charming dick. A dick who doesn't quite get it, but since it's so obvious that he doesn't, it's okay. Plus, he says "aboot". It's adorable. Seeeriously. I felt his character was kind of an eye-roller.

He was definitely an unintentional and understandably-hurt dick, I should have added that, but still, a bit of an entitled, whiny baby. And it seemed all the film wanted to do was back him up, especially in opposition to Annie, which was a bit disappointing. Though I appreciate that they never once made her seem anything less than independent.

Also, Wiig was wonderful.

[dreamdead]

Boring and only incidentally funny. The latter can work if the characters are actually grounded in some vaguely plausible reality, but Wiig's character is needlessly denied any sense of realness during the plane and bridal shower scenes. Contrivance ensues there, and hinders the flow.

I think the best bit was actually the Wilson Phillips part.

[Raiders]

Boring and only incidentally funny. The latter can work if the characters are actually grounded in some vaguely plausible reality, but Wiig's character is needlessly denied any sense of realness during the plane and bridal shower scenes. Contrivance ensues there, and hinders the flow.

I think the best bit was actually the Wilson Phillips part.

Incidentally funny? Can you define that? I don't understand what you are getting at.

[Raiders]

I also find it amusing you claim there isn't enough "realness" in the film, but can accept an impromptu appearance by Wilson Phillips and a sudden complete break into dance and sing-along by everyone in attendance but not an awkward and frustrated woman quirking out and cursing and destroying property.

It is actually that particular kind of quirky "realness" that makes the film work. She isn't just getting mad but lashing out at her own problems and embarrasment. It's a pretty nasty scene that shows the film is certainly less physical comedy and actually more emotionally unstable than most such films.

[Boner M]

I think the one thing that bugged me most is the idea that the Maya Rudolph character would be friends with Rose Byrne's priss, let alone best friends. The rapport shared between the former and Wiig in the early scenes makes this completely inexplicable, and creates a shaky foundation for the conflict to follow.

[Pop Trash]

You've never had friends who inexplicably become friends with people who are very different from them? This often happens post college among people 25-35 or so, when money and 'networking' seems to become more and more a good idea.

[Boner M]

You've never had friends who inexplicably become friends with people who are very different from them? This often happens post college among people 25-35 or so, when money and 'networking' seems to become more and more a good idea.
Sure, but the Byrne/Rudolph friendship just felt flimsily realised in this case. I get the conceit, but it needed to rise above merely that.

[Pop Trash]

Sure, but the Byrne/Rudolph friendship just felt flimsily realised in this case. I get the conceit, but it needed to rise above merely that.

I'm more with Raiders on this, but fair enough.

[Mara]

I think the one thing that bugged me most is the idea that the Maya Rudolph character would be friends with Rose Byrne's priss, let alone best friends.

I saw it as being in line with the new persona and Rudolph was trying to create for herself-- her "Chicago" self with money and connections and important friends. I sort of doubt that there was much real affection going in that direction-- although I believed that Byrne's clinging was genuine, because she was so desperately lonely for female companionship.

Also, the guy who played Rudolph's groom-to-be totally looked like a shorter, chubbier Peter Krause.

[number8]

Also, the guy who played Rudolph's groom-to-be totally looked like a shorter, chubbier Peter Krause.

That would be Tim from Tim & Eric.

[Mara]

That would be Tim from Tim & Eric.

Ah, one of those shows I don't watch.

I'm surprised that they cast a comedy name for that role-- considering I don't think he ever speaks.

[dreamdead]

I also find it amusing you claim there isn't enough "realness" in the film, but can accept an impromptu appearance by Wilson Phillips and a sudden complete break into dance and sing-along by everyone in attendance but not an awkward and frustrated woman quirking out and cursing and destroying property.

It is actually that particular kind of quirky "realness" that makes the film work. She isn't just getting mad but lashing out at her own problems and embarrasment. It's a pretty nasty scene that shows the film is certainly less physical comedy and actually more emotionally unstable than most such films.

I think the Wiig and Rudolph moment, before the end credits, where they act out the "Hold On" lyrics works as there's enough in their characters to accept the plausibility of their reaction at that. The end credits sequence where everyone is dancing and singing along doesn't work. For the very reason of realness that you identify.

But the whole maid-of-honor speech/war between Wiig and Byrne just comes off as too artificially trying; it becomes a prolong-the-awkwardness moment, and I know that I don't vibe with humor based around awkardness. I guess I can buy the flip-out at the reception if it were quicker and less sustained, but it too quickly becomes an action-like setpiece, when a quicker moment would seem more "logical."

And I don't see enough of Wiig's instability to buy her flip-out on the airplane. Maybe I'm insular enough to believe most everyone would reign in their fear of flying, but the amount of absurdity that moment procures just is too much. Whenever there's some grounding in the characters, it's ok. But the film also reaches for MacGruber-like absurdity, and the film to me doesn't reconcile those tendencies enough to feel like it can convincingly move between them.

At least I'm finally coming around to Dogtooth, though, eh?

[Derek]

Ah, one of those shows I don't watch.

I'm surprised that they cast a comedy name for that role-- considering I don't think he ever speaks.

It was odd. I mean, I'm glad he's getting work, but I kept waiting for him to break out and sing "I Sit Down When I Pee".

[Bosco B Thug]

And I don't see enough of Wiig's instability to buy her flip-out on the airplane. Maybe I'm insular enough to believe most everyone would reign in their fear of flying, but the amount of absurdity that moment procures just is too much. I mean, her getting liquored up was the big reason for it all. I bought it.

My least favorite part was the "Trying to get the cop to help them by driving recklessly" scene. One, it leads the story no where, they end up not needing the cop at all. Two, the cop's at maximum smug at this point. And three, Rose Byrne actually attempting to help Wiig in the car was so out-of-character. If the purpose of that was to show just how lame Helen is, then it worked.

[NickGlass]

I love Paul Feig's work in television, but this film just felt so lax and director-less.

[Pop Trash]

TEAM BRIDESMAIDS!

[Spinal]

I would like to request that people stop disliking the funniest parts of the movie.

[Mara]

I liked the character of the cop and found him charming.

To put in a dissenting opinion.

[Bosco B Thug]

I would like to request that people stop disliking the funniest parts of the movie. What parts didn't you like? :)


I liked the character of the cop and found him charming.

To put in a dissenting opinion. I'd say I'm the dissenting opinion at this point. Of course, I'm not saying that he's not half-okay.

[Spinal]

What parts didn't you like? :)



I think there's a bigger problem with the puking scene. It's a real stretch to imagine that a group of women will schedule a large dinner right before they go to try on dresses.

[Bosco B Thug]

I think there's a bigger problem with the puking scene. It's a real stretch to imagine that a group of women will schedule a large dinner right before they go to try on dresses. Yeah, I was wondering if that was somehow customary, because that didn't make much sense to me either.

Logically the scene lapses, but I imagine the movie would have lost something essential without that scene, haha.

[DavidSeven]

Well, the scene makes sense if considered in conjunction with Annie's continuous bungling of the pre-wedding festivities. She planned the dinner. Helen probably wouldn't have scheduled a heavy dinner in that spot, as she kind of states explicitly at the restaurant.

[Irish]

I didn't get this one at all. I laughed at the broad humor stuff (the scene in the dress shop had me howling) but I felt all that material was completely at odds with the more serious character based stuff they were trying do.

On one hand, you've got insightful, reflective, painful moments built around a woman clearly struggling with an adult life that hadn't turned out well, and on the other you"ve got Melissa McCarthy hiking up her dress and shitting in a sink and eating lunch meat off the chest of air marshals. Good stuff, but somewhat bizarre when you find them both in the same movie.

[Lucky]

I liked the character of the cop and found him charming.

I got my hair cut unintentionally shorter than usual around the same time this movie came out, and there was about a month of time when I was regularly told I looked like the cop from Bridesmaids. The first time by my new hairdresser. I'm assuming she did this on purpose.

[StanleyK]

This was plain old okay. Some really funny moments (the toast at the beginning was almost as brilliant as The Office in protracting a deliciously awkward moment, and the scene where Annie tries to get the cop's attention is just great broad comedy), plenty of unfunny ones (anything involving the groom's sister. The extent of her character = "LOL she so fat and crazy!" Awfully handled character). As much as I respect it for acknowledging just how much of an awful, insecure wreck the protagonist is, I also have to hate on it for being the sort of movie where every emotion is telegraphed, every character growth accompanied by an explanatory conversation. For every good thing about this movie, there's something which I felt it did wrong; I honestly can't say conclusively that I liked it or disliked it. The deciding factor may be its completely bland and inert direction- good or bad story, as a movie it's basically a non-entity.

[Ezee E]

There's some really drawn out scenes in this movie. Some of which I didn't find funny from the beginning. Yikes. And at two hours, it was pretty disappointing.

Wiig is far and above everyone else in this movie, with only McCarthy having some type of uniqueness (and something worth laughing about) compared with the rest of the girls who are all rather boring.

Best scenes in the movie is the timeliness of Wiig making/eating her cupcake (very poignant), attempting to get the Officer's attention, and McCarthy's great use of bad language. The ridiculous bridal shower is pretty good...

Eh, I want to like this movie more because Wiig is front and center, but I just don't see it happening.

[DavidSeven]

Wiig is far and above everyone else in this movie, with only McCarthy having some type of uniqueness (and something worth laughing about) compared with the rest of the girls who are all rather boring.

I thought Rose Byrne brought a level of depth to her performance that far exceeded what a character of that type would normally call for. I agree that Wiig had the standout performance, but I was quite impressed with Byrne.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Just watched this. Went on a little too long and had a few weird setups without payoffs (the lesbian kiss, Wiig's mom meeting Cozbi). Also, I thought a couple of "larger" gags, like the food poisoning sequence and Wiig trying to attract the cop's attention, traded too much time for too little reward.

However, not a big deal, because this was otherwise a fun, charming, often hilarious comedy. Wiig gives a fantastic performance that feels genuinely fearless, and she gets some great support from McCarthy, Rudolph, and Rose Byrne, who finds new ways of playing a familiar role. She seems genuinely oblivious to her near-obscene levels of bitchery.

One thing that does bother me about the Apatow brand is that it relies too much on "line-a-ramas," where the comedy comes in a tiny parade of non sequiturs. Wiig's list of driving offenses toward the end is a good example. There's no sense of escalation, only a continual tap-tap-tap of gags. When they hit, they can be funny, but it feels to me like writers throwing every idea they can think of into one scene, and I prefer more traditional build.

The scene with Wiig and Byrne trading microphones is my kind of thing. And her drunken antics on the plane. "Stove is a stupid name."

That's more of a general problem I'm shoehorning into this thread, though. Overall, this is one of the best movies I've seen this year.

[Ezee E]

Wouldn't say it's writers adding on to a scene as it is the actors/directors simply improvising on set.

Seems like every comedy overuses it since 40-Year-Old Virgin.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Wouldn't say it's writers adding on to a scene as it is the actors/directors simply improvising on set.

I'm sure some of it's improvisational, but I do know that some comedy writers like to have supplemental scripted material on hand for a given day (usually minor changes, like different non-sequiturs) and may shoot it, allowing for time.

And you're right about Forty-Year-Old Virgin. "I know you're gay" is this technique's Ground Zero.