Bridesmaids

Up to this point, I've never really written a negative review. A few people have complained about it, actually. I've found redeeming qualities in every movie I've watched so far, and even when I gave The Tree of Life a low score, I still spent a fair amount of time highlighting what was good about the movie. Well, the streak is finally broken. After much hype, I sat down and watched Bridesmaids, and man, what a mistake that was.

Bridesmaids' biggest problem is that it's a day late and a dollar short. A raunchy comedy revolving around a maid of honor's misadventures, it's essentially the female version of The Hangover. Kristen Wiig plays Annie, a failed entrepreneur-turned-jewelry store worker that has been asked to be the maid of honor at her best friend's wedding. Standing in the way of her duties is a series of increasingly-outlandish pitfalls surrounded by an equally-outlandish cast of characters, from snobby rich-girl Helen (Rose Byrne), to vulgar sister-of-the-groom Megan (Melissa McCarthy). Shenanigans ensue, the age-old cliches surrounding marriage are lampooned, and I couldn't have been more bored. The jokes were predictable, the characters were all two-dimensional, and the storyline was nothing special at all.

I really feel like I'm missing something. This movie was nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress for Melissa McCarthy, who admittedly was the funniest part of this movie. I get that there aren't that many raunchy comedies featuring a strong female cast, and I'm glad that they were able to make a successful one, but it doesn't excuse the fact that the movie simply wasn't very good. It's terribly cliche and boring, and I expect so much better out of the cast that was assembled. They could have made a great movie, but they just didn't. I give this movie 3 ruined bridesmaids activities out of 10.