Bridesmaids

Director: Paul Feig
Writers: Kristen Wiig, Annie Mumolo
Starring: Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne
Release Date: May 13, 2011
Length: 2 hours 5 minutes

Directed by Freaks and Geeks creator Paul Feig, Bridesmaids is a knockout Judd Apatow produced comedy with a female cast. SNL’s absolutely brilliant Kristen Wiig, who co-wrote the script, leads the pack of feminine comedians in possibly the best comedy of the year. Do not be fooled, though. Although the cast is widely female, Bridesmaids is the furthest thing from a chick flick. The story centers around the lonely recently unemployed Annie (Wiig), who desperately wants to be in a committed relationship, even though she spends her nights sleeping with the gorgeous but dense Ted (Jon Hamm). When her best friend Lillian (Maya Rudolph) get’s engaged to her boyfriend Dougie and Annie is asked to be her maid of honour, she goes into an even deeper level of exasperation. At the engagement party for the couple, Annie meets the other bridesmaids, Lillian’s young naive friend Becca (The Office’s Ellie Kemper), Dougie’s crude sister Megan (Melissa McCarthy), Lillian’s cynical cousin Rita, (Wendi McLendon-Covey), and Lillian’s new close friend, Helen (Rose Byrne) who’s married to Dougie’s business partner. Annie immediately takes a disliking to the perfect and fake Helen, but she’ll have to suck it up because the bridesmaids are going to be spending a lot more time together in preparation for what could only be a very interesting wedding. Ms. Wiig has been generating fans since she first started on SNL and also appearing in Apatow’s comedies since her first scene-stealing appearance in Knocked Up. She is simply a comical genius and continues to prove herself most with her very first starring role in this year’s Bridesmaids. With her fantastic writing and improvisation skills, Wiig is the best woman in comedy right now, overriding other SNL icons like Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, and one of the most beloved women in Hollywood. Along with Feig’s fantastic direction and Apatow’s producing, Wiig makes Bridesmaids one of the most enjoyable comedies of all time. Wiig’s performance is beyond hysterical as well as heartbreaking, showing her true talent as an actress as well as a comedian. As she sinks further and further after unintentionally upsetting Lillian many times, and being upstaged by Helen also, we laugh harder and feel more of her pain each time. Wiig carried this film beautifully, and Bridesmaids could have been amazing with just her alone, however a fantastic cast of actors accompanies her. Fellow SNL cast member Maya Rudolph is incredibly amusing as Annie’s best friend Lillian but it is really the unique friendship between them that creates the most laughs. Melissa McCarthy, who many know as the sweet cook Sookie on Gilmore Girls, is simply brilliant as the portly and tough Megan. Her character may have single-handedly gained the most laughs next to Wiig, with her serious manly attitude and pure vulgar personality. Australian actress Rose Byrne, who got her start on the Crime drama Damages, and currently stars in X-Men: First Class, has proven herself to totally master both comedy and drama. With her appearance in last year’s Get Him To The Greek, and her hilarious portrayal as Annie’s enemy Helen, she continues to strive with comedic acting. The Office’s Elli Kemper is again funny with her cute and naïve character in Bridesmaids and Wendi McLendon-Covey is also quite humorous as the sardonic and tired mother, who needs some girl time. Irish actor Chris O’Dowd is very sweet and funny as Annie’s love interest, Officer Nathan Rhodes, who kindly deals with Annie’s uneasy moods. Jon Hamm just keeps showing off his comedic skills after doing an incredible job hosting SNL twice and guest starring on 30 Rock. He continues to shine in comedy with an uproarious performance as the self-absorbed jerk Ted. Two people that weirdly made everyone laugh from their pure presence were Rebel Wilson and Matt Lucas as the weird overweight British siblings Bryn and Gil, who share an apartment with Annie. The whole cast is fantastic, but it’s the inventive script that makes Bridesmaids a one of a kind comedy. Wiig and co-writer Annie Mumolo’s writing is so creatively entertaining, it makes Bridesmaids that comedy that you miss jokes because you are laughing so hard at the last one. There is a particular scene in the film that takes place on an airplane that just simply bowls everyone over in a hysterical fit. While being this funny, the story is also surprisingly very real and has a touching level with Annie almost coming to a standstill in her life, while everyone is moving on around her. It is so refreshing to see an R-rated comedy, and in this case a triumph of a comedy, with a female cast and will most likely alter some opinions about Judd Apatow. There is nothing to dislike about this original comedy that stars some of the most talented hilarious women in Hollywood. It’s a necessity that everyone see’s this summer’s best comedy, Bridesmaids.