Review of Bad Moms (2016) by Dc127 — 29 Nov 2016

I watched Bad Moms with my fiancee. I was mildly excited for the movie as I am a big fan of all three leads. All three women do a fine job with the script they have been given. It is only because of my appreciation of these three that I even gave this movie a four.

Their strong screen presences (particularly Kristen Bell's weird stay at home mom) carried what is otherwise a dumpster fire of a film. First lets just get the main message of the film out of the way.

It repeatedly depicts that men are bumbling, incompetent, and narcissistic. Even Amy's (Mila Kunis) son is presented as a spoiled brat while her daughter is a hard working but stressed achiever. The only male presented in an even slightly positive light is a widower who is just a vapid body for Amy to have rebound sex with.

No men are shown at the PTA meetings, taking care of their kids, or doing anything remotely parental. If some rampant sexist depictions of women were done in the name of "comedy" the movie would universally be panned.

Instead the film continues the growing trend that it is okay to depict (white) men as buffoons. The rest of the plot of the movie is basically paint by numbers. There are nuanced characters or any real insight besides "moms are the best but society demands too much of them.