Reviews

Annie (Kristen Wiig), is a maid of honour whose life unravels as she leads her best friend, Lillian (Maya Rudolph), and a group of colourful bridesmaids on a wild ride down the road to matrimony.

You may now be thinking that this sounds like the synopsis of a standard chick flick. Throw in the awkwardly charming love interest, played by Chris O'Dowd (The IT Crowd), and yes, I suppose it does. Prudes beware though, despite the fairly innocent premise, the film's opening sex scene sets the bar of impropriety rather high (for an American film, anyhow). From that point onwards, the film is laden with profanity, toilet gags, and generally crazy, albeit humourous, behaviour.
Annie's life is a wreck: a failed business, a non-existent love life, and a friends-with-benefits arrangement with a man who won't even pretend that he wants her around. It doesn't help that her best friend Lillian is about to get married and seems to be replacing her with the richer, classier Helen (Rose Byrne). Cue the epic catfight that ensues as the bridesmaids begin to plan the pre-wedding festivities. Annie and Helen butt heads about everything from the bridesmaid dresses to the engagement party while the other bridesmaids seem to be all too happy to agree with whichever idea they last heard.
All in all, the jokes tend to be a bit hit-and-miss, although the hits tend to be eye-wateringly funny. In terms of characters, Rhodes (Chris O'Dowd), the Irish traffic cop, and Megan (Melissa McCarthy), the groom-to-be's sister, steal the show with their respectively underplayed and over-the-top acting. The love story side plot was appropriately sweet without overdoing it and was a welcome break from the constant abuse being hurled between the rival pair. Despite the fairly nothing-y ending and some strange plot points, Bridesmaids was a thoroughly enjoyable watch. Just don't take your parents...