I'm thinking I'll write a slightly briefer post today, since I really really should like... do (real) work.
So last night I saw "Bridesmaids" (2011) with a good lady friend. We rolled in post-ribs and ice cream and were ready for a good time, and the movie definitely delivered. The theater was almost full with an incredibly responsive audience, which definitely enhanced the experience. As such, I gave the movie a 4.
Jezebel, which is quickly becoming my go-to source for movies I won't hate, has been all over "Bridesmaids". Given that it was written by two women and is cast primarily with women, the site has been eagerly tracking its box office progress with an awareness that the odds are stacked against a comedy driven by non-dudes. (Well, mostly--we of course likely have Judd Apatow to thank for the ick-factor humor that occasionally rears its head.)
Awesomely, the movie is OWNING in ticket sales, probably because it's legitimately funny in a broadly accessible way, and yet it's getting at a niche of milestones-of-life stories that hasn't really been effectively exploited for movie purposes. There are plenty of comedies about courting, getting married, being a groomsman, having babies, etc., but being a bridesmaid has not (as far as I'm aware) been previously made into a terribly effective funny movie. AND, especially at a time during which my peers are increasingly getting married or threatening to get married, this movie (with its comedic anxiety about handling the responsibility of a friend's wedding like an adult without thoroughly blowing it) seems weirdly personally timely. So all in all, well done, ladies!
Especially after an endless slew of bromance comedies, it's also really awesome to have a comedy that focuses on friendships between women. In that spirit, much of the tension in the film stems from conflict between Annie (Kristen Wiig) and her childhood best friend, Lillian (Maya Rudolph), the bride-to-be. Lillian initially (yikes) selects Annie to be her maid of honor, but when Annie basically implodes under the pressure of competition with Lillian's NEW best friend, fellow bridesmaid Helen (Rose Byrne), the friendship crumbles with it. This is a comedy, so they obviously reconcile, but...
Yeah so basically 75% of this movie was like having a knife in my heart that occasionally got abruptly twisted, sometimes clockwise, sometimes counterclockwise, always painfully. I would assume that most women who see "Bridesmaids" can identify with the horrible anxiety of being replaced in your best friend's affections by some fucking interloper. In spite of the irrationality of that fear, it's still hard to sit with it for two hours.
Annie and Lillian are such good friends!! They love each other, relish a lifetime of knowing each other, and are silly co-conspirators together. Early in the movie, the two attempt to "steal" an outdoor fitness class by following the workout routine from behind a tree, and when they're discovered, they escape and tuck into a yummy breakfast together. Not only does this stoke my bitter jealousy for people who live in the same city as their best friends, but it paints a nice little picture of friends who have happily, comfortably made room for each other in their lives through years and years of friendship.
And then she. Ruins. EVERYTHING.
Of course, because this is a lovely and well-crafted movie in many respects, the writers made a place for sympathy even for Helen's character eventually. But before that, they do a great job of making you loathe her, knowing that they're only uncovering your lurking absurd insecurity.
Not to spoil absolutely everything about this movie, which is DEFINITELY worth seeing in (crowded, if possible) theaters for the group-enjoyment effect, but: as I said, the friends eventually reconcile (duh, comedy) and everything resolves nicely. As the movie draws to its close, Annie and Lillian serenade each other with their song, and I have to admit I welled up... and spent the rest of the night with a certain Aerosmith song in my head.
Oh man friends are a beautiful thing. It's great when a movie can make you laugh your ass off and simultaneously remember something so important.
'Til next time.
<333
From the sounds of your post, you were certainly hooked on watching “Bridesmaids”, and not doing your thesis proposal. Well, it’s okay to procrastinate from thesis writing every once in a while. It can help relieve stress that is cause by writing, that we all know can be unavoidable. I think it would be good to just make sure to have time to work and write again.
ReplyDelete