Bachelorette

Following weakly on the heels of Bridesmaids is this other bridesmaids movie. It kind of sucks for the writer/director Leslye Headland, in that it's based on the play she wrote several years ago (and she likely already had the movie deal before Bridesmaids appeared). Even if it was beaten to the punch, though, it's not very good. The film follows three high school friends (Kiresten Dunst, Lizzy Kaplan and Isla Fisher) who gather back home for the wedding of another friend (Rebel Wilson). All three of the bridesmaids have pretty cruddy lives, and they're upset that their less attractive, fatter friend is getting married before them. The night before the wedding, on a coke binge, the three tear Wilson's wedding dress and then have to scramble to repair it. The thing that will put most viewers off of this film is that the three leads are just awful, petty people. Many of the supporting characters (notably James Marsden and Adam Scott) are even more despicable. You have to wonder how these people are friends with the bride and groom in the first place. I did think, after a while, they characterised the three women enough that we at least understood why they were so screwed up. There are a handful of funny moments. Any small bit of goodwill it had built, though, was jettisoned by its ultra-lame rush-to-the-wedding finale, and then a particularly painful and miscalculated post-wedding toast where Adam Scott tries to hook back up with Caplan, who was his high school girlfriend. The film's really just not worth sitting through.

A dark comedy starring three women. That's all the basic information you need to know this was not going to bide well with film snobs, much less the misogynistic ones. Bachelorette is a very humorous and fun movie that I had a great time with. I knew as soon as I got through watching it to come rate it on IMDb though that people would be bashing it, but I had no idea the backlash would be this harsh.

The story is simple enough: Four high school friends all get together to relive their glory days as one, the most unattractive (Rebel Wilson), is about to get married. The bridesmaids consist of high-strung Kirsten Dunst, burnout Lizzy Caplan, and dim-witted but lovable Isla Fisher, which in my opinion Isla Fisher absolutely stole the show. I loved it. It is very mean and in your face with it's brutality. You almost wonder why these women are even friends to begin with, but unlike everyone saying there is no reason, the film ties up all it's loose ends and shows how all of the women have their own battle scars and shining personalities in the end.

Don't let the comments and rating shy you away from this one, there are some gut-busting scenes. Like I said, Isla Fisher was magnificent. I thoroughly enjoyed and believed in her character, not to say the other stars didn't deliver, she just outshines them!

***It's too bad that this movie came out in the same year as "Bridesmaids." That coincidence contributes to shallow thinkers erroneously setting these two films against each other. Both share a basic scenario: a bridal party in the days before a wedding. Aside from that, they are completely different movies.

Pick two "Civil War" films. "Gone with the Wind" and "Gettysburg." There's room in the world for both.

"Bridesmaids" was a hilarious film.***

So now... THIS movie, called "Bachelorette."

This is a dark, edgy, uncomfortable comedy. The characters are realistically flawed. They do ugly things and treat each other badly. They also obviously care for each other and make some astute observations about life. There are too many weirdly, subversively funny moments to list.

If you watch it expecting a light, breezy "chick flick" you will be disappointed. If you watch it expecting a gritty, grimly hilarious portrait of three very human women trying to overcome their own flaws and self-inflicted disasters, you'll have a damn good time.

Notes: 1) Kirsten Dunst is awesome playing a tightly-wound, abrasive control freak. I love the hard edge she has here. And the way her face betrays the fact she's always on the verge of coming apart at the seams.

2) Lizzy Caplan. FINALLY in a movie and role worthy of her comedic talents.

3) Rebel Wilson. Naturally hilarious. Too bad her role necessitates under-utilizing her gifts.

4) James Marsden. I've only ever seen him in good-guy roles (at which he is excellent). It's a confirmation of his skill that he's equally great at playing a sleazeball manipulator.

5) June Diane Raphael. The uniquely nutty, endlessly comical Raphael's cameo in the bathroom with Lizzy Caplan is easily the funniest scene in the movie.

When I saw the cast of this movie, I couldn't believe I had never heard of it before, but now that I've seen it, I know why no one talks about it. I can watch almost any movie and have a good time. But this movie was a hard watch, not only because it wasn't funny but because all the characters are unlikeable jerks. And when the credits started to roll, I asked myself, was that it? Where is the character development? Don't get me wrong. I think the cast are all great actors in other films, Kirsten Dunst (Spiderman Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), Isla Fisher (Hot Rod), Lizzy Caplan (Cloverfield), Rebel Wilson (Pitch Perfect), & Adam Scott (Parks and Rec.) But in this movie, the main three characters are all super mean to Rebel Wilson's character, and they are all shallow, self-centered losers who have no character arc. Also, it's really weird to hear Rebel Wilson try and speak with an American accent. But it isn't as bad as how they fat-shame her the entire movie. I mean poor Rebel :( It wasn't the worst movie in the world. Isla Fisher and Rebel had a few funny moments and did the best with what they had to work with. I wanted to like this movie but there just isn't enough substance for me to get over the fact that the characters are awful people.

Three messed up high school friends Regan (Kirsten Dunst), Gena (Lizzy Caplan), and Katie (Isla Fisher) get together to be bridesmaid to their fat friend Becky (Rebel Wilson)'s wedding. However, a crazy night before the wedding leaves them scrambling to fix the wedding dress.

This movie starts off badly. The three girls are way too mean, and we don't get any sense why they're friends with Becky. Then the funniest actress in the bunch is sidelined to be the sweet character. It's a waste of Rebel Wilson. All the jokes just fall flat. As the movie progress, we get a sense of the girls' history and friendship. It improves the likability of the girls, and allows the jokes to hit better.

This is Leslye Headland's directorial debut based on her play. Maybe if she had put in scenes in the beginning showing the four girls' friendship. Maybe a flashback to their high school days would help. The movie definitely needs to show that they were real friends in the old days. Or else it's just three mean girls making fun of the fat girl from high school.