Kristen Wiig is one of my favorite parts of the past few seasons of Saturday night Live, so when I heard she had a new movie coming out, I was immediately interested.
Then I saw the title. “Bridesmaids”. Not exactly a title which inspires the thought that this is going to be a movie that guys are going to like.
The more I heard about it, including the involvement of Judd Apatow (SUPERBAD, KNOCKED UP, 40 Year Old Virgin) to collaborate once again with Paul Feig (with whom he worked on FREAKS AND GEEKS), the more interested I started to get.
In trying to get a better perspective on this film, I reached out to one of the lovely and funny actresses from this film, Wendi McLendon-Covey, to get her take on whether or not this was a film guys could appreciate.
Rob: Thanks so much for agreeing to answer some questions about Bridesmaids. From the commercials and reviews I’ve seen, I actually find myself thinking that this might not be just a “chick flick”.
Wendi: Actually, this film is NOT a chick flick at all. It’s just a funny film with a bunch of funny girls who would never ever go to see a chick flick themselves. When the two writers (Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo) were working on the film, they were only interested in writing a funny film that they themselves would want to watch. They also wanted to write funny parts for all their friends; luckily, I’m one of their friends! So the motivation behind the story was NOT to add to the cannon of feminist cinema, or to further promote any tired cliches about finding Mr. Right while wearing the perfect shoes. It’s a true-to-lfe story about trying to find your way in the world when it seems like all your friends are doing better than you.
Can I just say that I find most “girl movies” insufferable? Ick!
Rob: I’ve heard it described as “raunchy”, but that’s not something I’ve ever heard about a movie with six of its main characters as women. It was produced by Judd Apatow and directed by Paul Feig, so I’m starting to get the idea that it could start to go the route of raunch, but are you telling me that Kristen Wiig wrote something raunchy?
Wendi: Sure it gets a little raunchy, but it’s all grounded in truth. We use some bad language (who cares?) and there’s a scene where we all get food poisoning. But that scene is only there to show that Kristen’s character is a bad decision maker. It’s not gratuitous, and it’s actually really funny! And the bachelorette party? I don’t want to spoil anything, but let’s just say we never get to Vegas.
Rob: Jon Hamm is a guy’s guy who a lot of people don’t realize has a very strong comedic side. Based on some of the trailers, he seems like his character might be something of a driving force that set some things into motion to make Kristen Wiig’s character want to have this wild trip. How accurate is that?
Wendi: John Hamm is stupidly funny in this movie. No shades of Don Draper here! And Chris O’Donnell (from the show “IT Crowd” in the UK) is fantastic. The wedding is really just a back drop for all of these characters to spend time together; wedding parties are always made up of people who would never spend time together otherwise.
Rob: You’re doing great work on Rules Of Engagement, most people are very familiar with Kristen Wiig and Maya Rudolph from Saturday Night Live, but they may not be as familiar with the other ladies. Out of the rest of the female members of the cast, which of their performances do you think will make people sit up and take notice?
Wendi: I think this movie will make everyone will fall in love with Kristen Wiig. She needs to take a vacation now, because after this movie opens she will never have a free moment again! Rose Byrne (DAMAGES) is known mainly for dramatic roles, but she is hilarious in her role as a passive-aggressive, Type A bitch. Melissa McCarthy (MIKE & MOLLY) plays a super weirdo unlike anything she’s ever played on screen, and the relationship between my character and Ellie Kemper’s (THE OFFICE) character has enough ammo for a whole separate movie.
Rob: Aside from just featuring some hot, funny ladies, what else about this movie do you think is going to appeal to guys?
Wendi: I don’t buy in to the notion of men and women finding different things funny. In the end, funny is funny! It’s either good or it isn’t. And if you’ve ever been IN a wedding, been TO a wedding, or used the word wedding in a sentence, you’re going to love this movie.
It opens today, Friday, May 13th, and from everything I’ve seen and heard, guys shouldn’t shy away from it. If / when you see it, leave your thoughts in a comment here, helping your fellow guys know whether or not to check it out! Until then, here’s the red-band trailer… and if you’re not familiar with red band trailers, it means they can use foul language… which they do… multiple times.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69FstXfJYuw
Awesome interview Rob with an actress I remember fondly from Reno 911. Actually from the trailers I’ve seen this is a movie as a guy would enjoy seeing. Hopefully it does well dealing with Thor’s second week.