In an age of dime-a-dozen chick flicks that are completely superficial in their creative and commercial aspirations, director Paul Feig's "Bridesmaids" is refreshingly honest and hilarious, reminding us again of the power of the funny female and the enormous cinematic potential of star Kristen Wiig.
Sporting a terrific script from Wiig and Annie Mumomo, "Bridesmaids" takes us into the life of Annie (Wiig), a broke thirty-something who gets booty called on the regular by a rich asshole (another great Jon Hamm cameo), is about to get thrown out of her apartment by her half-witted British roommates and works a miserable job at a retail jewelery store.
When best friend Lillian (Maya Rudolph) gets engaged, Annie decides to take up the reins of Maid of Honor and meets Lillian's bridesmaids: Becca, the too innocent for her own good newlywed (Ellie Kemper); perpetually boozy and jaded housewife Rita (Wendi-McLendon Covey); plus-sized party animal Megan (Melissa McCarthy, in the definition of a scene-stealing role); and of course Helen (Rose Byrne) the control-freak trophy wife of Lillian's fiancee's boss and ultimately the film's semi-antagonist, thwarting Annie's every endeavor with a transparent tinge of condescension.
Strung together by a loose, episodic structure similar to "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" (another Apatow production), the film maintains dramatic escalation by means of letting all of Annie's failures, missteps and awkwardness inform her inability to perform as Lillian's Maid of Honor; Wiig gives Annie a spectacular display of drunkenness on a flight to Vegas that is absolutely uproarious. We root for Annie because she's a smart, attractive woman and we know that her incompetence at this stage of her life is due to previous heartbreak.
Director Feig gets most of the credit for the film's substantive feel. He allows his female stars the ability to stay improvisational inside the bodies of these fleshed out, honest characters, and we love them all the more because of their natural reactions and attitudes. But this is also the film's weakest trait; some scenes are very fatty with dialogue and gags such as an engagement party one-up-a-thon between Wiig and Byrne get dragged out to an unnecessary length.
"Bridesmaids" is a blast and a great reminder that the female condition is a lot funnier and more nuanced than most (both gals and dudes) would like to believe. This is truly a breakout vehicle for Kristen Wiig and a solid entry in the realm of Apatow-style character driven comedies.
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