Barb & Star Go To Vista Del Mar
(B+ or 3/4 stars)
'Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar' (directed by Josh Greenbaum) is a wild, wacky & absurdist comedy that feels like a Frankenstein-stitched amalgam of Austin Powers, Zoolander, Dumb & Dumber, Mamma Mia! and even The Hangover. This is the type of film that you either accept & ride along its wackadoddle wavelength ... or you don't. Plenty of jokes miss, but many hit hard. And if you love all things Kristen Wiig, you might find this cheerily bonkers comedy a welcome balm for the troubled times we're living in. After losing their jobs due to their Nebraska furniture store closing, BFFs/co-workers Barb (Annie Mumolo) & Star (Wiig) decide to follow a friend's advice in vacationing at Florida's Vista Del Mar for a sunny getaway.
Lucking into a suite at a gaudily glamorous hotel, they can't wait to relax & take part in fun excursions. Unbeknownst to them, however, super-villain Sharon Gordon Fisherman (Wiig, again) wants revenge on the Fla. town that humiliated her long ago. With her child henchman Yoyo (Reyn Doi, SO funny in the opening scene) at her side + wannabe-lover/henchman Edgar (Jamie Dornan, of 50 Shades Grey fame) positioned at that same hotel, Sharon plans to unleash a swarm of genetically-modified, deadly mosquitoes upon Vista Del Mar to kill everyone. But our villain doesn't anticipate that conflicted Edgar - who pines about his unrequited love for Sharon - ends up falling for Star & vice-versa. To that, Barb feels left-out and, her friendship with Star is put to the test. With Sharon still hell bent on carrying out her plan, Barb & Star must work through their issues to save the day.
Comedy being what it is, your mileage may vary, but on the whole, the deranged silliness on display through this film gave me some needed solace. Right from the get-go with young Yoyo singing Barbra Streisand's "Guilty" as he tosses newspapers on lawns ... I was IN. What follows includes: big, goofy musical numbers, a lounge piano player repeatedly singing such things as "I love boobies", a mournful crab named Morgan Free"d"man who spews lines from Morgan Freeman films, super-villains lairs, murder plots involving said mosquitoes, and a water spirit named Trish who, well, I won't spoil who cameos that role. It's all as bananas as the banana boat Barb & Star can't wait to ride together. And visually, this movie is an aquamarine beacon of absurdist delights; where the pastel interiors of the hotel, the chachkis for sale on the street, & a seafood buffet of oddities litter the screen.
Wiig & Mumolo are great as our bawdy, culotte-wearing Midwestern buddies. They wrote the script for this film and gave themselves some truly daffy, but loveable characters to play. From their hair-dos to their outfits to their accentuated accents to the rambling way they talk ... I dug it all. Wiig also has fun as the deliciously ludicrous femme fatale villainess who is driven by revenge for the cruelty inflicted upon her as a child. And the surprise of the movie is Jamie Dornan, who was obviously cast for his muscularity & handsome looks, yet allowed himself to be a complete airhead for the proceedings. Dumb as rocks, his Edgar is still someone we root for. And boy, was Dornan living his best life in the "Seagulls in the Sand" beach sequence, haha.
Now, this film is far from perfect. Wiig & Mumolo's committed brand of comedy either works for you or it doesn't. The players try hard, but the laughs don't always come. The sci-fi storyline grew a bit tedious. And perhaps these characters would be better suited for an SNL skit rather than a 107 min. long film. But I needed bright, colorful, silly, diverting ... and this movie gave it to me. This film makes no attempts to justify its buddy flick-musical-parody existence other than to make you laugh {the laughs outweigh any labored misfires}. And though the film's premise is pure unhinged lunacy, at the center of it is an off-beat celebration of sisterhood. Barb & Star's friendship is enviable. And wherever they go next, I'll go along for the zany ride.
Lucking into a suite at a gaudily glamorous hotel, they can't wait to relax & take part in fun excursions. Unbeknownst to them, however, super-villain Sharon Gordon Fisherman (Wiig, again) wants revenge on the Fla. town that humiliated her long ago. With her child henchman Yoyo (Reyn Doi, SO funny in the opening scene) at her side + wannabe-lover/henchman Edgar (Jamie Dornan, of 50 Shades Grey fame) positioned at that same hotel, Sharon plans to unleash a swarm of genetically-modified, deadly mosquitoes upon Vista Del Mar to kill everyone. But our villain doesn't anticipate that conflicted Edgar - who pines about his unrequited love for Sharon - ends up falling for Star & vice-versa. To that, Barb feels left-out and, her friendship with Star is put to the test. With Sharon still hell bent on carrying out her plan, Barb & Star must work through their issues to save the day.
Comedy being what it is, your mileage may vary, but on the whole, the deranged silliness on display through this film gave me some needed solace. Right from the get-go with young Yoyo singing Barbra Streisand's "Guilty" as he tosses newspapers on lawns ... I was IN. What follows includes: big, goofy musical numbers, a lounge piano player repeatedly singing such things as "I love boobies", a mournful crab named Morgan Free"d"man who spews lines from Morgan Freeman films, super-villains lairs, murder plots involving said mosquitoes, and a water spirit named Trish who, well, I won't spoil who cameos that role. It's all as bananas as the banana boat Barb & Star can't wait to ride together. And visually, this movie is an aquamarine beacon of absurdist delights; where the pastel interiors of the hotel, the chachkis for sale on the street, & a seafood buffet of oddities litter the screen.
Wiig & Mumolo are great as our bawdy, culotte-wearing Midwestern buddies. They wrote the script for this film and gave themselves some truly daffy, but loveable characters to play. From their hair-dos to their outfits to their accentuated accents to the rambling way they talk ... I dug it all. Wiig also has fun as the deliciously ludicrous femme fatale villainess who is driven by revenge for the cruelty inflicted upon her as a child. And the surprise of the movie is Jamie Dornan, who was obviously cast for his muscularity & handsome looks, yet allowed himself to be a complete airhead for the proceedings. Dumb as rocks, his Edgar is still someone we root for. And boy, was Dornan living his best life in the "Seagulls in the Sand" beach sequence, haha.
Now, this film is far from perfect. Wiig & Mumolo's committed brand of comedy either works for you or it doesn't. The players try hard, but the laughs don't always come. The sci-fi storyline grew a bit tedious. And perhaps these characters would be better suited for an SNL skit rather than a 107 min. long film. But I needed bright, colorful, silly, diverting ... and this movie gave it to me. This film makes no attempts to justify its buddy flick-musical-parody existence other than to make you laugh {the laughs outweigh any labored misfires}. And though the film's premise is pure unhinged lunacy, at the center of it is an off-beat celebration of sisterhood. Barb & Star's friendship is enviable. And wherever they go next, I'll go along for the zany ride.