Bridesmaids [Blu-Ray]

Was Bridesmaids the funniest movie of the summer? Negatory. I’m going to have to give that award to Horrible Bosses. But Bridesmaids is still a thoroughly funny and enjoyable film. My only complaint -- not enough Tim Heidecker. When Bridesmaids first came out and everybody was saying it was so hilarious, I didn’t believe them. From my point of view, women usually aren’t very funny, and I can count the ones who make me laugh on one hand. Half my hand, even. Two fingers. But I’ll be damned, Bridesmaids is a pretty damn funny movie all throughout, and it also has a great story. I approve.

The story focuses on Annie (Kristen Wiig), a down-on-her-luck, thirty-something woman whose already shitty life gets that much worse when her best friend, Lillian (Maya Rudolph), gets engaged. It puts everything in perspective for her that her life isn’t going where she wants it to go. What makes matters worse is that she’s poor and her best friend chose her to be the Maid of Honor. What luck. What follows is some of the most awkward, cringe-inducing, but hilarious comedy I’ve seen in a long time. Women will be able to appreciate all the “realistic” (says my fiancé) sex and relationship talk, but there are plenty of gross-out moments for the guys, too. Like one woman barfing in another woman’s hair. Or another woman taking a shit in a fancy sink. I mean, come on, what guy wouldn’t laugh at somebody taking a shit in a fancy sink? It’s all the more outrageous when it’s Melissa McCarthy taking a shit in said sink, as she freaking steals the movie with her off-beat comments. I wish she had a spin-off film of her own.

As for the rest of the cast, well, they’re great, too. Unlike most “chick flicks,” Bridemaids gives equal time to the men in their lives as well, but never allows them to steal the thunder from the women. Oh, no. The ladies run the show here, and they’re all great doing so. The last great comedy featuring a mostly female cast that I can remember was Mean Girls, and this movie’s even better than that one. Mostly, it’s because of the relatable story. We’ve all been there where we wanted to do something nice for somebody we love, only to realize we couldn’t because we couldn’t even afford to fix our taillights. It’s a sweet tale, and even through all the cussin’ and awkward (but hilarious) moments, you still like the characters because they’re honest and real.

If I have only one major complaint with the film, it’s that Tim Heidecker (from the Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!) is woefully underused. You might think, well, that’s no reason to be upset with a film. But we’re talking about Tim Heidecker here, one of the funniest people on the planet. He plays Maya Rudolph’s fiancé and seriously only has one line in the entire film. He says (spoiler alert!), “I do.” I do? You get Tim Heidecker, the funniest man on the planet, in your film and he only has one line, and it’s, “I do”? That’s criminal! The man’s a comic genius! But otherwise, great flick. If you’re not as big a Tim Heidecker fan as I am, then give this movie another half star. It deserves it. This disc would get a full five stars if the commentary wasn’t unlistenable. It’s like sitting in a diner next to a group of excited girls on the soccer team who can’t stop talking about the upcoming prom. I don’t think I ever counted an instance on the commentary where at least two people weren’t talking at the same time. It was ridiculous. At least they sound like they’re having fun.

The deleted scenes are all really funny, and while they deserved to be deleted, they all make for one hell of a special feature. There are not many of them, but they’re all worth checking out. The “extended and alternate scenes” are also pretty outrageous. Jon Hamm and Jill Clayburgh (rest her soul) get in some particularly dirty lines.

There’s a “gag reel” and a section with some improv (I think) in “Line-o-rama” that’s great. There’s also a faux-commercial for the jewelry store in the movie called “Cholodecki’s.” It’s pretty humorous. So, aside from the commentary, it’s all a good time. Get this disc now.