Bridesmaids

[CMonster]

So, I realize I'm about two years behind on this one, but whatever, I just watched this film and was surprised by the reception it got a couple years ago. I didn't actually go into the movie with high expectations because one person told me it wasn't very good and I trusted that person, so all the hype leveled out in my head with that. I say that because I went into this film with an open mind. I didn't have crazy high expectations because of my friend and didn't have low expectations because of the overwhelming positive response I heard from so many people. About 20 minutes in I was very displeased but I powered through the whole thing because thats just what I do when I watch movies.

For those of you who have not seen it, Bridesmaids is a film about *generic character name* played by Kristen Wiig. She was a very talented baker whose business went under and her boyfriend downgraded her to basically a fuck buddy. Now enter Maya Rudolph, her best friend from when they were kids who is getting married to a guy whose boss is super rich and has a trophy wife who is trying to take Maya's only best friend forever spot away from Kristen. This is really making Kristen hit rock bottom but don't worry, when her tail lights on her car are out a charming cop with a cute accent and a heart of gold pulls her over and lets her off. Now enter the other Bridesmaids, that one chick from the U.S. version of the Office, a blonde whore who hates her kids and husband, and Megan played by Melissa McCarthy who was actually pretty funny. They have a big comedy scene on a plane and one in a dress shop. Then the rest of the film is basically bereft of comedy. It's Kritnen's life getting worse and set ups and payoffs that revolve around plot points about her life.

Now, I'm ok with a comedy that takes time to flesh out a character like they were clearly trying to do with Wiig, but the problem lies with the execution. Now there is no one right formula for comedy, but I'd like to compare a scene from Bridesmaids with a film I love and how each fleshes out a character.


So it maybe unfair to compare the writing of Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo to that of Joel and Ethan Coen but point being, this is the kind of thing for me that separates the development of characters in good comedies and bad ones. In the Big Lebowski we have a scene that basically is one character telling another to think about something in a different way. But the scene is full of of building on how characters interact with each other, how they think, and how they express themselves. In the scene from Bridesmaids, we get filler. It was an attempt to give Wiig's character something she loves and makes her happy so we can connect with her because up until that point she was unhappy and awkward. Oddly enough, a character being awkward and hard to watch, doesn't always drive the audience away. Example:

In case you've hidden yourself away from the world of comedy, that's Ricky Gervais doing the character of David Brent. David Brent is basically what propelled Gervais into popularity. He specializes in capitalizing on awkward moments unabashedly and not making up for it later. Still people loved David Brent and eventually Michael Scott when the Office was brought to America not because they baked cupcakes and cutely smiled, but because the actors went all in giving the characters a genuine feel that is much easier to connect with than fluff feelgoodery.

Now the movie does deserve its props. The two big comedy scenes on the plane and in the bridal shop were funny. Interestingly enough they constituted around 15 minutes of the total run time and were the only scenes where the ensemble of Bridesmaids were given a more equal footing of screen time. I'll be the first person to say that the hype over the Hangover was dumb and it was an average comedy at best, but that said it gave all it's main ensemble equal footing and a near constant stream of jokes to keep going for in every scene. Sadly, I would say that the group dynamic in Bridesmaids was better than that in the Hangover films but we only get to see just a few minutes of that.

Finally, I'll admit I was probably a little extra harsh on this movie. I love comedy, but its always bothered me when a comedian or comedy feels like it has to prove that a "something" can be funny. Examples would be someone like Whitney Cummings. She isn't just a comedian, she is a female comedian and wants you to know how awesome female comedians can be. It's annoying and awful. On the other hand, Amy Schumer is just a comedian. She may technically be a female comedian, but doesn't need to throw that in your face, she just is funny. Same with the guys like Gabrielle Iglasies. Don't be a fat comic, just be a comic. I'm not saying women can't tell women jokes or fat people can't tell fat jokes, but I've always felt you could tell the difference between somebody just doing it and somebody trying to prove something. There were a couple points in Bridesmaids where it didn't feel that way, but most of it felt like women out to prove that women can make a womanly women vulgar woman comedy and it got tiresome. And the filler shit like the cupcake cooking scene, which was not the only cooking scene, and the forced in romance that had nothing to do with the rest of the film just played into stereotypical appeal to women tropes that are tired and annoying. If they had cut the ensemble down to 4 and really focused on the group this movie really could have been great.

Tl;dr
Bridesmaids sucked and you are a fool if you liked it. If you did like it please tell me why for reasons that don't include McCarthy shitting in a sink and Wiig calling an annoying highschool girl a cunt.

[ShogunRua]

CMonster, I always look forward to your movie thoughts, especially the full reviews. Partly because of similar tastes, and partly because I think you have interesting, worthwhile opinions.

However, your reviews are inevitably hampered by very clunky writing. For instance, your entire first paragraph is vague, unclear, and could be summarized in two sentences. (If any of it needs to be said at all) Just get to the meat of your work; the actual problems with "Bridesmaids".

You make some decent arguments (especially using one's weight/gender/race/etc. as a comedic crutch), but tie them together in a confusing, poorly explicated manner. Your conclusion really surprised me; by the final paragraph, it almost sounded to me like you thought "Bridesmaids" was an above-average whose flaws only kept it from true greatness.

Instead, I learn it was apparently so awful that anyone who liked it is an idiot!

[CMonster]

Shogun, I would not really consider anything I write here more than just a rough draft. I may feel compelled to write sometimes, but I don't think I've ever really felt compelled to review and edit a forum post beyond making a spelling change that somebody pointed out. Also, my last two paragraphs were trying to point out that this movie had a lot of potential going for it but only used that for about 15 minutes and spent the rest of the time using tropes that pander to women and playing out boring plot points that aren't comedy turning it into an annoying film that was really not good.