Mari (Kristin Bell) was bullied at school for being a spotty geek with specs and braces. Having grown into a successful businesswoman, she is horrified to discover that her beloved older brother's fiancée is Joanna (Odette Yustman), the leader of the high school bullies who victimised her. Her mother Gail (Jamie Lee Curtis) tells her to let it go until it turns out that Joanna's rich aunt Ramona (Sigourney Weaver), who is funding the wedding, occupies a similar position in her own past. And Mari, believing that Joanna's apparent near perfection is all put on, goes on the attack to protect her brother.
This is all rather good, if improbable, fun. Kristin Bell does fairly well with a part which is fairly vindictive (in what she believes is a good cause) for much of the film, as well as somewhat contradictory. Odette Yustman does better as Joanna, a character who is allowed to show high school nastiness and an apparently reformed side - there is much more shading here.
But the two older women have the meatier roles, and both relish the opportunity to play fairly broad comedy (although Jamie Lee Curtis does frequently slip over the edge into gurning caricature). There are also some entertaining supporting characters, with Kyle Bornheimer's Tim delivering a particularly funny "speech" at the wedding rehearsal.
The humour is a pleasing mix of situational, character, wordplay, and slapstick, with only the unfunny and unnecessary bathroom sequence falling flat.
And the film resolves nicely - notwithstanding the nastiness which drives most of the film, things end well.
I enjoyed this.
This is all rather good, if improbable, fun. Kristin Bell does fairly well with a part which is fairly vindictive (in what she believes is a good cause) for much of the film, as well as somewhat contradictory. Odette Yustman does better as Joanna, a character who is allowed to show high school nastiness and an apparently reformed side - there is much more shading here.
But the two older women have the meatier roles, and both relish the opportunity to play fairly broad comedy (although Jamie Lee Curtis does frequently slip over the edge into gurning caricature). There are also some entertaining supporting characters, with Kyle Bornheimer's Tim delivering a particularly funny "speech" at the wedding rehearsal.
The humour is a pleasing mix of situational, character, wordplay, and slapstick, with only the unfunny and unnecessary bathroom sequence falling flat.
And the film resolves nicely - notwithstanding the nastiness which drives most of the film, things end well.
I enjoyed this.