Spring Breakdown

Released in 2009 and directed by Ryan Shiraki, "Spring Breakdown" is a comedy about three geeky women in their mid-30s (Amy Poehler, Parker Posey & Rachel Dratch) who finally decide to get "with it" by going to Spring Break at the notorious South Padre Island, Texas. They're supposed to keep an eye on a senator's daughter (Amber Tamblyn) so she doesn't get out of hand. Jane Lynch plays the politician whereas Missi Pyle is on hand as a party girl.

The plot is cute, there are some quietly amusing bits and the raunch is thankfully kept at bay, but this is mostly a missed opportunity. I think females will appreciate it more than I did; it screams "chick flick." It does, however, show the awful truth about the bikini & beer subculture built around Spring Break (pukin' on the beach and having sex with a total stranger while dead drunk; yeah that sounds like fun – woo hoo!).

The film runs 84 minutes and was shot at South Padre Island, Texas, and Long Beach & Los Angeles (UCLA), California.

GRADE: C- (4.5/10)

Spring Breakdown stars Amy Poehler, Parker Posey and Rachel Dratch as three thirty-something losers. They are 15 years out of college and now they are going on a spring break vacation.

The high school or college losers are very common characters, it was a pleasure to see the older version of the cliché characters.

The movie is riddled with clichés, you will know what is going to happen next, but I still found myself laughing along with it. There are a lot of great actors in this movie and they all embody their different characters perfectly.

The movie is short and spends just the right amount of time necessary to give us the background information needed on each of the characters. The movie does not take itself seriously so it works very well for a quick, funny comedy.

Gayle O'Brien (Amy Poehler), Becky St. Germaine (Parker Posey), and Judi Joskow (Rachel Dratch) are three friends from State College. They think that things will get better, but 15 years later, they are still losers. Becky works for Senator Hartmann (Jane Lynch). She gets sent down to springbreak to watch over the senator's daughter Ashley Hartmann (Amber Tamblyn) and her friends Lydia (Mae Whitman) and Truvy (Sarah Hagan). Only the three young friends are really just as much of losers as the three older women.

Amy Poehler got some pretty good laughs in. When she was rejected by a blind Will Arnett, that's a funny bit. Parker Posey and Rachel Dratch aren't that funny at all. Dratch chasing after Justin Hartley seems more creepy than funny. As for the younger three, they just don't have enough to do. Amber Tamblyn is pretty good but there might be too many lead characters. Not everybody has the room to breathe.

I don't think this movie is for everyone. But I saw it this weekend in Seattle and I thought it was so funny. I haven't laughed that hard during a movie in long time. I thought the entire cast did a great job. You will find yourself laughing from the first moment through the very last scene. I suspect some moviegoers (especially the ones who take themselves WAY too seriously) will be turned off by this brand of humor. Not me. The movie was a real surprise. And the entire theater was rolling with laughter throughout the showing I went to which makes me think that a lot of people enjoyed themselves and were happy to have a good time at the movies for a change. I cannot wait to see it again! If you're in the mood to LOL then this is for you. Funny funny funny funny!

Hmmm... well, "Spring Breakdown" is a comedy mostly targeted for a female audience. But it is still somewhat of a movie that can be seen by guys as well. However, don't expect to be laughing hard at any time throughout the course of the entire movie.

What works out mostly for the movie is perhaps the female cast, as they did have nice chemistry on the screen and each one brought something unique to the movie in each their own right. And it was also nice to see Seth Meyers, Will Arnett and Jane Lynch make special appearances in the movie.

The story in "Spring Breakdown" is about three ladies in their thirties who travel to South Padre Island in order to look after a senators daughter, but also to have a chance at partying like they never had a chance to do during their youth.

For a comedy, then I found myself, oddly enough, not really laughing at any point during the movie. That being said, then I am not saying that the movie is bad or boring, the humor just wasn't in my liking. The movie is still entertaining enough for what it was.

Unfortunately then "Spring Breakdown" is a very generic comedy that doesn't bring anything new or overly interesting to the comedy genre.