Bridesmaids is a movie that’s more than the sum of its parts. A gross oversimplification of the film would be to dismiss it as a cynical attempt to reinvigorate mainstream chick flicks similar to how The Hangover brought the raunchy dude comedy back to the forefront of modern culture.
The truth is far more complicated: Bridesmaids embodies the changing values of modern Americans as baby-boomers age into and past middle age.
Observe, for instance, the age of and sense of complacency in the main characters. Star and co-writer Kristen Wiig (Saturday Night Live) has written (with Annie Mumolo) a story of surprisingly heartfelt regret, which works as an insightful probe into an unemployed has-been’s psyche.
Gone are the simplistic romance elements from earlier genre efforts (think Nora Ephron’s sublime trifecta of charmingly naïve and optimistic films from the early 1990s). In Bridesmaids, marriage is the ultimate goal for women and men, so they skip over early notions of finding true love and soulmates.
Annie (Wiig) is encouraged to engage with the reliable, steadfast and very British cop Rhodes (Chris O’Dowd, Gulliver’s Travels) instead of the charming, rich but very vapid Ted (played with zeal by Jon Hamm, Sucker Punch). The notion that Annie must settle for a husband rather than continue searching for Mr. Right represents the crux of Bridesmaids‘ tragedy.
Annie is devastated by her high school best friend Lillian’s (Maya Rudolph, Grown Ups) engagement to a well-to-do but bland office slave (a surprisingly subdued cameo by Tim Heidecker of Tim and Eric’s Awesome Show). The movie proceeds as a bittersweet examination of the life Annie could have led but didn’t in her search for the right man.
Her conscription as maid of honor for Lillian’s wedding brings her in contact with the other bridesmaids, composed of the procession of successful friends Lillian has acquired since high school. Annie grows steadily more jealous, depressed and resentful of her own life.
Slowly, the need for her to find a boyfriend — any boyfriend — increases, as she finds herself out of work and kicked out of her home by her obnoxious Brit landlord (Matt Lucas, Gnomeo & Juliet).
But a description of Bridesmaids‘ plot is somewhat of a disservice to the movie. Wiig’s story sounds — on paper — like a bleak and disjointed slog through life as an underachiever in middle America. Fortunately, her screenplay is saved by a charm and wit that pervades each and every scene.
Peppered throughout are blisteringly funny gags and one-liners, culminating in a pitch-perfect piece of wit involving the Transportation Security Administration and a loaded pistol. Director Paul Feig (creator of TV’s Freaks and Geeks) brings out the most in Wiig and Mumolo’s script by casting a group of lovely and agreeable ladies as the bridesmaids.
Rose Byrne (Insidious) is entirely believable as the chilly and haughty Helen, while Wendi McLendon-Covey (Public Relations) and Ellie Kemper (The Office) have good comedic timing and develop an endearing rapport. Wiig is a revelation, rendering a brilliantly messy performance that eases over some of her more ludicrous character beats in the script.
However, Melissa McCarthy (Life as We Know It) completely steals the show. Comparisons to Zach Galifianakis’ breakout turn in The Hangover are inevitable as McCarthy plays a similarly obnoxious role in this female wolf pack. McCarthy easily has the best lines the screenplay has to offer, in addition to a cute character arch that sees her emerge as the voice of reason in the group.
The cast is able, for stretches at a time, to distract the audience from the somewhat cobbled-together plot. Some peculiarities aside — why, for instance, are there so many Brits in Milwaukee? — Wiig’s script packs in enough emotion and humor to compensate for the lacking storyline.
Bridesmaids ends, as it inevitably must, on a happy note. And yet, there’s something oddly sad in the finale. A sense, perhaps, of lost opportunities and resignation as Annie faces the choice between Mr. Reliable and Mr. Right.
RATING: 3 stars out of 5
chzhang@umdbk.com
