Review of Bridesmaids (2011) by Benjamin F — 21 Nov 2012

Bridesmaids, though a little uneven, is a great counterpoint to the backward sorts still repeating tired old misogyny about women not being capable of being funny.

Kristen Wiig, who's only continued to shine more brightly since her departure from SNL, carried the film comfortably on her shoulders in her character's neurosis and desperation. Maya Rudolph was similarly compelling as the best friend she feared losing. Rose Byrne brought both effective scorn and pathos as the film's antagonist. And Melissa McCarthy brought many of the film's biggest laughs. Reno 911's Wendi McLendon-Covey and The Office's Ellie Kemper were both funny and certainly there, but didn't actually have very much to do, their characters having received the least attention in the script out of the entire cast. The IT Crowd's Chris O'Dowd was likable as the nice guy Irish cop love interest for Wiig's Annie, though his material naturally paled in comparison to his IT Crowd work. Rebel Wilson and Matt Lucas had small, funny roles, too. Tim Heidecker technically appeared as Rudolph's husband-to-be, but had essentially zero lines, surprisingly, for half of the notorious Tim & Eric. Jon Hamm had a small, funny, and appropriately creepy supporting role. And McCarthy's husband Ben Falcone had a few funny, small appearances in scenes with McCarthy. All in all, a strong ensemble comedy cast, though not all of them were used to their full potential.

Annie Mumolo and Wiig's script was mostly consistently very funny, though there were some scenes seemingly geared more toward male viewers that felt out of place to me - like the big scene when everyone started getting sick, entirely unnecessary gross-out humor - that dragged the film down. The film was at its funniest and best when it strayed into more emotionally raw territory between Annie and other characters - aside from McCarthy's own hilarious scenes - bringing out the humor in that sort of discomfort, on top of bringing out the film's pathos. Freaks and Geeks' Paul Feig did a fine job with the film's direction as well, which only dragged a little in its pacing at times, in part due to what unevenness there was to the script. The visual direction, while not particularly outstanding, was plenty serviceable and in no way lacking throughout as well.

Weddings have been the center of a lot of awful, phoned in, lazy, and flat out insultingly dumb romantic comedies for ages. In an era now where the typical Hollywood romantic comedy exists for little more reason than to insult your intelligence and give your brain a cavity, Bridesmaids is a breath of fresh air. It isn't perfect, but it isn't afraid to go darker places in seeking its comedy, and it's written and executed with more talent and confidence than most comedies these days. While not imperfect, Bridesmaids is more than funny enough to be well worth your time. As I said in the opening, it's a film you could certainly use to put to rest all the tired misogyny that still exists out there at all about women and comedy - anybody who thinks ladies can't be hilarious hasn't been paying attention, and that's just too damn bad for them.