Change usually only comes after enough rich people get really pissed off. Judd Apatow, after being roundly criticized for his one-dimensional portrayals of women in movies like Knocked Up, Superbad and The 40 Year Old Virgin hired Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo to write Bridesmaids, which opened May 15th to strong reviews.
Whatever the privileged circumstances surrounding this decision,it was more than refreshing, it was inspiring. Apatow, instead of lashing out at his critics, actually sat back and considered that maybe he didn’t actually know everything about writing women and maybe that was something worth examining. Aside from the leader of the free world who is routinely called a pussy for being reflective and thoughtful instead of brash, aggressive and heedless, that willingness to be wrong and explore opportunities for change is pretty rare in this world, particularly and especially in Hollywood so let’s all pause and appreciate a man like that. 
A big budget, summertime-ish release written, co-produced and starring comedy-women is kind of a big deal. As soon as I heard about it I was excited, but when I saw the first trailer my doubts started creeping in. It seemed as though the studio didn’t have quite enough confidence that the idea of all woman ensemble comedy would get people to the theaters, and so felt compelled to market the movie as a female-driven comedy for men. These were somewhat valid concerns-they need to get assess in seats, after all, and make money if they’re ever going to take a chance on something like this again, but the ads and the promotions and even the poster , (Entouragey, no?) prepared me for disappointment.
The movie wanted to prove to Hollywood and to audiences that women are capable of being as funny as men are, but it seemed like the question that people were really asking is “can women be funny like men?”
If “can women be funny like men” asks whether women comedians can engage in cheap laughs, gross out humor, graphic sex talk and lots of drunken antics, the answer is of course they can. But, are those things, for two contiguous hours, even actually really all that funny? The box office success of movies like The Hangover would say yes, but do box offices even know anything?
What I was hoping the movie would explore, since we’ve established (apologies, Mr. Hitchens) that women are, indeed, capable of being funny beyond the hot-girl-falling down formula, is the question, “In what ways can and are women funny that is unique to them and different from the ways that men are funny?” Despite my worst fears entering the theater, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it did.
The movie isn’t perfect. Its drawn some criticism for the fact that despite it’s feminist stride-making, it is, in essence, about a wedding and marriage and doesn’t attack the institution or the so-called marriage industrial complex, but like, why does it have to? This isn’t a movie about radical feminism and turning gender roles on their head and I think the assumption or expectation that any worthy movie about women would or should do that is unreasonable. Most women, regardless of sexual orientation, gender politics or personal style, will at one point or another, be involved in the wedding of a close friend.
I could have done without the gross-out scene at the bridal store, or Annie’s physical-comedy tantrum at the shower. These things are negligible though, and there are still people who want to see that kind of thing; fine. What is compelling about Bridesmaids, and what was impressive and new was the friendship between Annie and Lillian, the competition between Annie and Helen and the fears that Annie herself faced,-none of which were about not having a boyfriend. Her life trajectory, which is really the focus of the movie, felt honest, respectful and real. The scene where Annie and Lillian sit together at brunch at some whatever spot, in jeans and tee-shirts, with no stupid cute talk shit was the first scene in a movie about grown women that I’ve seen in forever that sounded like actual women talking to each other.Annie’s fears about her own life and the way that they manifest themselves in competitive jealousy with Helen were shown with consideration and warmth; they were real and valid, respect rarely given to women’s concerns. The only other movie I can think of that had showed real-seeming supportive female relationships and characters not focused solely on getting men’s attention is Clueless, a movie that has almost no other basis in reality.
There are a million negative things to say about the movie, most of which have been pointed out elsewhere, but I will mention some now: wonderful Melissa McCarthy was given too many jokes that relied on her weight, (although she was given surprising depth by the end of the story) the other two bridesmaids played by Ellie Kemper and Wendi McLevon-Covey weren’t developed at all, possibly because there just wasn’t time, but kudos must be given for not making either of them a silly caricature.
Probably most glaringly, the resolution between Annie and Helen at the end felt like a cop out. Having said that though, I truly appreciated the way that Helen, in the end, wasn’t evil and that Annie had to accept-as many women have to accept- that sometimes your for-real best friend makes a close friend that you can’t fucking stand. That’s life, and that’s another important point the movie made. Not everyone you don’t like is automatically an asshole; sometimes you’re the one being an asshole. 
Bridesmaids is flawed but exuberant. It is certainly not going to fix the skewed gender politics in Hollywood all by itself but for what it is, its a pretty decent first step. At best it’s box office success ensures we’ll see more from this producing team, and if that means a few more Bridesmaid’s and a few less He’s Just Not That Into You’s I’ll be very happy. At the least, Bridesmaids gave us a story about women who are not striving to be perfect or thin or married. It is simply a big budget Hollywood blockbuster comedy starring and written by women which is it’s own good thing.
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