Rating: R and Unrated
Starring:
Kristen Wiig as Annie
Maya Rudolph as Lillian
Rose Byrne as Helen
Chris O’Dowd as Rhodes
Melissa McCarthy as Megan
Ellie Kemper as Becca
Wendi McLendon-Covey as Rita
Greg Tuculescu as Kevin
Tim Heidecker as Dougie
Jessica St. Clair as Whitney
Rebel Wilson as Brynn
Matt Lucas as Gil
Jill Clayburgh as Annie’s Mom
Franklyn Ajaye as Lillian’s Dad
Michael Hitchcock as Don Cholodecki
Kali Hawk as Kahlua
Joe Nunez as Oscar the Security Guard
Lynne Marie Stewart as Lillian’s Mom
Andy Buckley as Helen’s Husband
Molly Buffington as Helen’s Stepdaughter
Matt Bennett as Helen’s Stepson
Dana Powell as Flight Attendant Claire
Mitch Silpa as Flight Attendant Steve
Ben Falcone as Air Marshall Jon
Angelica Acedo as Flight Attendant in Coach
Richard Riehle as Bill Cozbi
Directed by Paul Feig
Special Features:
Feature Commentary: With director Paul Feig, co-writer Annie Mumolo and cast members Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Melissa McCarthy, Wendi McClendon-Covey and Ellie Kemper.
Line-o-rama
Cholodecki’s Commercial: Check out what’s new with Cholodecki’s when you watch the never-before-seen “commercial” from Annie’s jewelry employer!
Exclusive HD Content
“Hold On” Song Performance of Wilson Phillips’ Hit
Annie vs. Helen
Pocket Blu
My Scenes
BD-Live
Gag Reel
Deleted, Extended & Alternate Scenes
Made of Honor: Behind the Scenes of Bridesmaids
Drunk-o-Rama
Pep Talk
Other Info:
Widescreen (2.40:1)
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Sound
Spanish and French Subtitles
Spanish and French Language
Running Time: 2 Hours 5 Minutes, Unrated – 2 Hours 11 Minutes
The Details:
The following is the official description of the film:
“Thirty-something Annie (Kristen Wiig) has hit a rough patch but finds her life turned completely upside down when she takes on the Maid of Honor role in her best friend Lillians (Maya Rudolph) wedding. In way over her head but determined to succeed, Annie leads a hilarious hodgepodge of bridesmaids (Rose Byrne, Melissa McCarthy, Wendi McLendon-Covey and Ellie Kemper) on a wild ride down the road to the big event.”
“Bridesmaids” is rated R for some strong sexuality, and language throughout.
Mini-Review:
If you have ever been involved in the planning of a formal wedding, whether male or female, then you can appreciate “Bridesmaids.” Few events in a person’s life are supposed to be so happy yet cause so much stress. Writers Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo explore many aspects of that while going well beyond it as well.
First of all, they throw five women together that only have one thing in common – the bride. These women represent several different stereotypes – the burned out soccer mom, the naive newlywed, the blue collar (bordering on manly) future sister-in-law, the neurotic best friend, and the rich, beautiful, and perfect friend. It’s the last two that provide most of the conflict in the film. Annie, feeling the pressure to be the best maid of honor possible, is constantly upstaged by Helen. From the reception speeches to the bridesmaids dresses to the bachelorette party, every step of the process is ruined by Annie freaking out over Helen upstaging her. And just when you think one of the situations can’t get any worse, it does. This is exemplified by a scene at a high end wedding dress boutique that goes horribly, horribly wrong. So as far as capturing the bridal experience and all of the complex social dynamics surrounding it, Wiig and Mumolo do a good job.
The cast of “Bridesmaids” is excellent. Kristen Wiig leads the cast and does a great job. She had to carry this movie and she does so well. The role called for a neurotic character and Wiig specializes in that. But I especially enjoyed her nemesis Helen who was played by Rose Byrne. Byrne came from a dramatic background, yet she continues to prove herself as a comedic actress. She more than holds her own with Wiig and any time the two are on the screen together, “Bridesmaids” is at its best. Rounding out the rest of the bridesmaids is Wendi McLendon-Covey as Rita. Her commentary on raising teenage boys is pretty funny. I’m a fan of Ellie Kemper from “The Office,” so it’s cool to see her as Becca. Finally, Melissa McCarthy is notable as Megan. She’s crude, butch, and steals most of the scenes she’s in. Unfortunately in “Bridesmaids,” then men aren’t represented quite as well. We barely see Lillian’s husband-to-be and Helen’s husband, played by “The Office” alumni Andy Buckley, is also barely seen. The men are only represented by John Hamm as Ted (who only wants Annie for sex) and Chris O’Dowd as Officer Nathan Rhodes (who is the perfect man for Annie). Despite being the only male representatives in the cast, both are quite funny in their polar opposite roles.
One of my main problems with “Bridesmaids” is the way that Annie is handled in the plot. The one time that she actually finds happiness with Rhodes, she immediately pushes him away. It didn’t seem logical or natural to her character. She also has a major meltdown that’s completely unjustified and actually turns the audience somewhat against her. It’s all so forced that you come to the realization that it was done just to manufacture conflict, not because it was realistic or true to the characters. This makes Annie and the plot a bit less entertaining.
Also, this being a film produced by Judd Apatow, you know that there’s some gross-out humor and sex jokes. Some of it is funny, but other parts of it just make you cringe. In a post-Farrelly Brothers era, that combination of heart and crudeness has lost some of its novelty.
Overall “Bridesmaids” is funny, but you have to be prepared to take the gross-out and sex humor along with everything else. Fans of Kristen Wiig and Rose Byrne should particularly enjoy it.
The Blu-ray is actually jam packed with bonus features. Since the movie called for a lot of improvisation, they ended up with TONS of extra footage, alternate takes, and bloopers. There’s so much here it’s almost overwhelming. That extra footage can be found in the featurettes Line-o-rama, Annie vs. Helen, Drunk-o-Rama, Pep Talk, and Roommates. Roommates is particularly funny because Rebel Wilson as Brynn and Matt Lucas as Gil do even more insane things. One alternate line even hints that the two were not brother and sister but actually pulling a scam on Annie. Also included are a feature commentary including most of the cast, a commercial for the Cholodecki’s jewelry store, a making-of featurette, and a bunch of deleted and alternate scenes.
