‘Barb and Star’ Give You a Laugh You Need Right Now
I don't know if it's because new releases have been so scarce lately or if I was just in a mood to laugh, but "Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar" was so much fun! It's the perfect escape in so many ways.
It's PG-13 and my 11-year old wanted to watch so I let her, and she laughed through it too but kept saying, "This movie is so weird, I'm so confused! Is it an adventure, is it supposed to be scary or funny or what?" Yes! Ha! Oh, my sweet and orderly one, it's just silly fun, so it's best to let go and forget trying to make sense of it all and join your slightly less-academic Mama in a relaxing afternoon of some insane humor and quirky lines that will give us laughs that we all need right now. Dumb it down with me, would ya?
The writing is anything but dumb. It's smart and creative, and you can tell that Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo are real-life friends because the chemistry is so good. Sheila O'Malley on RogerEbert.com points out that Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo met several years ago when they were both working at the improv and sketch comedy theater in Los Angeles called The Groundlings. There is an ease about them rolling around on the floor on top of each other, dancing in the hotel room, and jumping on the bed together. They can finish each other's sentences and pick up on cues so well that it's obvious they didn't meet a month ago. All we need is a glass of wine, a charcuterie board, and a few of our best gals in the room and this movie is the centerpiece for a fun night.
Barb and Star are two nice ladies from the Midwest who live together after the end of their marriages, and they decide to take a trip to Florida to get out of their comfort zones and experience some things in their culottes. Those light and airy capri pants play a huge role in the movie, and if they make a fashion comeback this spring we can thank Barb and Star.
Jamie Dornan is as hot as he was in "Fifty Shades of Gray," but he's a whole lot more human in this one and he's not afraid to lip-sync and launch into the absurd moments with the ladies. It's all a hoot.
Movies are supposed to be an escape, and this a great one. If you can let go and let it be silly, it will be the stress-reliever you need right now. And it might even make you want to buy some culottes.