Bridesmaids
Directed by Paul Feig
Written by Kristen Wiig and Anne Mumolo
Starring Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne, Melissa McCarthy
***1/2
There’s no way to say this without sounding hyperbolic, but the new Judd Apatow-produced, Paul Feig-directed comedy Bridesmaids is the closest I’ve seen a studio comedy come to channeling the Marx Brothers in some time. Now mind you, I don’t mean to place Bridesmaids in rarefied company of such classics as Duck Soup, A Night at the Opera or Animal Crackers. But what this movie has in common with those classics is the skillful way it escalates its comic set-pieces, upping the ante as the scene unfolds. Take the immortal stateroom sequence from A Night at the Opera, which opens in a perfectly ordinary way, with Groucho, Chico and Harpo crammed into a tiny cabin aboard a big ocean liner. Gradually, more and more people start entering the space (maids, janitors, manicurists) and attempt to go about their tasks despite the lack of room. The energy and choreographed chaos of the scene continues to build until it reaches its final punchline—Margaret Dumont opening the door—and the audience erupts in laughter.
