Bridesmaids (2011 film)

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Bridesmaids
BridesmaidsPoster.jpg
Theatrical movie poster
Directed by Paul Feig
Produced by Judd Apatow
Barry Mendel
Clayton Townsend
Written by Annie Mumolo
Kristen Wiig
Starring Kristen Wiig
Maya Rudolph
Rose Byrne
Melissa McCarthy
Wendi McLendon-Covey
Ellie Kemper
Chris O'Dowd
Jill Clayburgh
Music by Michael Andrews
Cinematography Robert D. Yeoman
Editing by William Kerr
Michael L. Sale
Studio Relativity Media[1]
Apatow Productions
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date(s)
  • May 13, 2011 (2011-05-13)
Running time 125 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $32.5 million[2][3]
Box office $288,383,523[4]

Bridesmaids is a 2011 American comedy film written by Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, directed by Paul Feig and produced by Judd Apatow, Barry Mendel, and Clayton Townsend. The plot centers on Annie (Wiig), who suffers a series of misfortunes after being asked to serve as maid of honor for her best friend, Lillian, played by Maya Rudolph. Rose Byrne, Melissa McCarthy, Ellie Kemper, and Wendi McLendon-Covey costar as Annie's fellow bridesmaids, with Chris O'Dowd, Jon Hamm, and Jill Clayburgh — in her final role — playing key supporting roles.[5]

Actresses Wiig and Mumolo crafted the screenplay after the former's cast in producer Apatow's comedy film Knocked Up (2007). Budgeted at $32.5 million, filming took place in Los Angeles, California. Upon its opening release in the United States and Canada on May 13, 2011, Bridesmaids was both critically and commercially successful. The film grossed $26 million in its opening weekend, eventually grossing over $288 million worldwide, and surpassed Knocked Up to become the top-grossing Apatow production to date.[6] It received a 90 percent overall approval rating according to Rotten Tomatoes and served as a touchstone for discussion about women in comedy.[7][8][9]

The film was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, and received multiple other accolades. On January 24, 2012, the film was nominated for both the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Melissa McCarthy and Best Original Screenplay. This made it the first Apatow-produced film to be nominated for an Academy Award.

Contents

Plot [edit]

Annie Walker (Kristen Wiig) is a single woman in her mid-30s. Following the failure of her bakery, she lost her boyfriend and her savings, reducing her career to a sales clerk at a jewelry store and forcing her to share an apartment with an obnoxious roommate and his sister. Her business's failure was so painful that she has given up baking entirely. She has a no-strings-attached sexual relationship with the self-absorbed Ted (Jon Hamm) but hopes for something more from him. Her best friend Lillian Donovan (Maya Rudolph) is virtually her only source of happiness.

Lillian becomes engaged and asks Annie to be her maid of honor. At the engagement party, Annie meets her fellow bridesmaids: Lillian's cynical cousin Rita (Wendi McLendon-Covey); idealistic friend Becca (Ellie Kemper); raunchy future sister-in-law Megan (Melissa McCarthy); and Helen Harris III (Rose Byrne), the beautiful but over-the-top wife of Lillian's fiancé's boss. Helen and Annie, each jealous of the other's friendship with Lillian, take an instant dislike to each other, but Lillian persuades them to spend time together.

Annie takes Lillian and the bridesmaids to a Brazilian steak restaurant for lunch before going to a chic bridal shop. However, Helen must use her influence to gain access to the shop when Annie neglects to make a reservation. While trying on gowns, the whole party—with the exception of Helen, who did not eat food at the restaurant—becomes sick from food poisoning, ruining their afternoon. Later, Annie's suggestion of a bachelorette party at Lillian's parents' lake house is overruled in favor of a trip to Las Vegas planned by Helen. Worried about her finances and too proud to accept a ticket paid for by Helen, Annie books a ticket in coach while the rest of the party flies first class. However, the trip is cut short due to an outburst from Annie, who due to her fear of flying had accepted a sedative from Helen. The scene on-board the plane forces an emergency landing in Casper, Wyoming, following which the party takes a bus back home. Annie apologizes but Lillian tells Annie she wants Helen to take over planning the shower and wedding, as "she does this sort of thing all the time" and to take some pressure off Annie's shoulders.

Annie continues to hope for a relationship with Ted, but begins flirting with Officer Nathan Rhodes (Chris O'Dowd), a friendly traffic cop who earlier had let her off without a ticket for broken taillights. Nathan encourages her to open a new bakery, but Annie refuses. Following a night together, the next morning Nathan buys baking supplies with which he suggests Annie make them breakfast. Offended, Annie leaves. Annie is later fired from her job and—unable to pay rent—moves in with her mother.

Annie travels to Chicago for the bridal shower at Helen's home, which has been transformed into an Paris-themed event. Helen then upstages Annie's heartfelt, handmade shower gift by giving Lillian a trip to Paris, an idea Annie expressed earlier, which Helen stole. Enraged that Helen has taken credit for the Parisian theme, Annie throws a temper tantrum, is kicked out of the shower and the wedding. On her way home, Annie is involved in a car accident, but the other driver flees the scene. Nathan happens to be the attending officer, and he admonishes her for not fixing her taillights and taking responsibility for her life. He storms off when Ted arrives to give Annie a ride. When he asks her to perform oral sex on him on the way home, she breaks off the relationship and walks home.

Throughout the next several days Annie becomes reclusive, refusing to leave her mother's house and watching television obsessively. After a pep talk from Megan, Annie realizes her errors and tries to make amends with Nathan, but he ignores her. On the day of the wedding, Helen appears at Annie's doorstep distraught; Lillian has disappeared, and Helen begs for Annie's help in finding her. Helen and Annie have a reconciliation of sorts, and Helen apologizes to Annie. The two enlist Nathan to help, and he grudgingly agrees. The group find Lillian at her own apartment, discovering that she ran from her wedding due to Helen's extravagant planning for the wedding and fear of leaving her life in Milwaukee. After reconciling, Annie helps Lillian prepare for her wedding.

Annie resumes her place as maid of honor at the wedding. After the wedding, which Annie agrees with Helen is "perfect," Helen again apologizes to Annie and states her hope that they can be friends in the future. Realizing that Annie and Nathan were falling in love, Helen had also arranged for him to pick Annie up after the wedding. Nathan and Annie reconcile and ride away in his patrol car.

Cast [edit]

Top to bottom: Saturday Night Live alumnae Kristen Wiig and Maya Rudolph star in the film.

Production [edit]

Writing [edit]

"It was only after the movie was completed that anyone said this had any significance. We didn't think it was any different than something like The House Bunny or Baby Mama. So we didn't think we were breaking any new ground. We just thought it was a fun thing to do."

—Producer Judd Apatow[10]

The script, originally titled Maid of Honor, was written by Kristen Wiig and fellow actress and screenwriter Annie Mumolo.[10] Friends for years, both had met each other at The Groundlings, a Los Angeles-based improvisational comedy troupe where they wrote sketches with one another, in the early 2000s.[10] The basic premise for the film originated in 2006, shortly after Wiig was cast in the supporting role of a passive-aggressive cable television executive in producer Judd Apatow's comedy film Knocked Up (2007).[10] Recognizing her comedic talent, Apatow asked Wiig if she had any ideas for a screenplay herself – a practice which had previously led to Steve Carell's idea for The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005) – and she and Mumolo soon came up with Bridesmaids.[10] Over the following years, writing commenced, with Wiig working on Saturday Night Live in New York City and Mumolo grinding out the script in Los Angeles.[11] The two would meet on weekends and conduct semi-regular table reads of drafts for Apatow to get his suggestions and notes.[10]

Filming [edit]

Oxnard, California

Bridesmaids was budgeted at $32.5 million.[12] Though primarily set in Milwaukee and Chicago, principal photography actually took place in Los Angeles, California.[13] Production designer Jefferson Sage, who has worked with Apatow and Paul Feig since their Freaks and Geeks days, noted that the first fact that appealed to him about the project "was that you had these two disparate worlds: There was Annie's world in Milwaukee, and then there was Helen's world in Chicago. It immediately drew this dichotomy between the rivalry that developed between them."[13] However, Sage acknowledged that it was a challenge to find "architecture that would give us those Midwestern worlds. Chicago is a beautiful, distinctive city architecturally, and restricted views of downtown L.A. feel like Chicago."[13] The production decided to use the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden as the location for Lillian and Dougie's wedding.[13] Additional scenes where Annie meets Officer Rhodes on the highways between Milwaukee and Chicago were filmed in Oxnard, California, which Sage described as a "broad, flat, green area away from mountains."[13]

Reception [edit]

Critical reception [edit]

The film-critics aggregate Rotten Tomatoes reported 90% of critics gave the film a positive review based on 232 reviews, with an average score of 7.5/10. The critical consensus is: "A marriage of genuine characters, gross out gags, and pathos, Bridesmaids is a female-driven comedy that refuses to be boxed in as Kristen Wiig emerges as a real star".[14] Metacritic, which assigns a standardized score out of 100, rated the movie 76 based on 37 critics.[15] Roger Ebert gave the film 3.5 stars of out 4.[16] Jeff Bayer said that Bridesmaids is "The best female-driven R-rated comedy of all time".[17]

Ms. magazine noted, to its "enduring surprise", that despite the involvement of Apatow, and "done and done and done" themes, the film passed the Bechdel test of female-driven storylines.[18]

Critic Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly pointed out the significance of Bridesmaids success as follows: "So far, the message that Hollywood seems to have taken from the incredible success of Bridesmaids is a predictably reductive one, something along the lines of: Hey, look! Raunchy comedies for women with awesome grossout scenes in the middle of them can be big box office too!! The message that Hollywood should be taking is: A comedy that's raunchy and fearless, and also brilliantly written and shrewdly honest about what's really going on in women's lives, may actually connect with the fabled non-teenage audience (remember them?)."[19]

Despite the majority of praise, the film was not without its detractors. The reviewers of Spill.com gave it an aggregate "Some Ole Bullshit," saying that the main character played by Kristen Wiig was an "annoying, horrible person" who was "a victim of her own circumstance." However, they praised the performance of Melissa McCarthy and Chris O'Dowd.

Melissa McCarthy was nominated for the 2012 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, and Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role.[citation needed]. The film itself also got a SAG nomination for best ensemble, considered by many to be a surprise due to the fact that Bridesmaids got nominated at the expense of the likes of more traditional fare like Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and Hugo among others.

Box office [edit]

Bridesmaids surpassed Knocked Up to become the top-grossing Judd Apatow production to date,[20][21] grossing $26,247,410 on its opening weekend and settling for a strong second place behind Thor.[3][22] Bridesmaids grossed $169,106,725 domestically and $119,276,798 in foreign markets, totalling $288,383,523.[3] It was reported that males made up 33 percent of the movie's audience and that 63 percent of the audience was over the age of 30.[22][23]

Accolades [edit]

List of awards and nominations
Award Category Recipients and nominees Result
Academy Awards Best Writing (Original Screenplay) Annie Mumolo, Kristen Wiig Nominated
Best Actress in a Supporting Role Melissa McCarthy Nominated
American Film Institute[24] Movies of the Year Shortlisted
Art Directors Guild[25] Contemporary Film Jefferson Sage (Production Design) Nominated
BAFTA Awards Best Original Screenplay Annie Mumolo, Kristen Wiig Nominated
Best Actress in a Supporting Role Melissa McCarthy Nominated
BMI Film & TV Awards[26] Film Music Award Michael Andrews Won
Critics' Choice Movie Awards[27] Best Supporting Actress Melissa McCarthy Nominated
Best Acting Ensemble Nominated
Best Comedy Won
Detroit Film Critics Society[28] Breakthrough Performance Melissa McCarthy Nominated
Golden Globe Awards Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Nominated
Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Kristen Wiig Nominated
Las Vegas Film Critics Society[29] Best Supporting Actress Melissa McCarthy Won
New York Film Critics Online[30] Best Ensemble Cast Won
Best Supporting Actress Melissa McCarthy Won
MTV Movie Awards[31] Movie of the Year Bridesmaids Nominated
Best Female Performance Kristen Wiig Nominated
Best Comedic Performance Kristen Wiig Nominated
Best Comedic Performance Melissa McCarthy Won
Best Breakthrough Performance Melissa McCarthy Nominated
Best Cast Bridesmaids Nominated
Best Gut-Wrenching Performance Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne, Melissa McCarthy, Wendi McLendon-Covey and Ellie Kemper Won
Best On-Screen Dirt Bag Jon Hamm Nominated
NewNowNext Awards[32] Next Must-See Movie Won
Online Film Critics Society[33] Best Supporting Actress Melissa McCarthy Nominated
People's Choice Awards[34] Favorite Comedy Movie Won
Favorite Ensemble Movie Cast Nominated
Producers Guild of America Award[35] Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures Judd Apatow, Barry Mendel, Clayton Townsend Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards[36] Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role Melissa McCarthy Nominated
Teen Choice Awards[37] Choice Movie – Comedy Nominated
Choice Movie Actress – Comedy Kristen Wiig Nominated
Choice Movie Actress – Comedy Maya Rudolph Nominated
Choice Movie Hissy Fit Kristen Wiig Nominated
Choice Movie Scene Stealer – Female Melissa McCarthy Nominated
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association[38] Best Acting Ensemble Won
Best Supporting Actress Melissa McCarthy Nominated
Best Original Screenplay Annie Mumolo, Kristen Wiig Nominated

Home media [edit]

Bridesmaids was released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc in theatrical (125 minutes) and unrated (131 minutes) versions on September 20, 2011. The DVD includes an audio commentary by director Paul Feig, co-writer Annie Mumolo, and cast members Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Melissa McCarthy, Wendi McLendon-Covey, and Ellie Kemper, as well as deleted, extended, and alternate scenes, a gag reel, Line-O-Rama (a typical Apatow-release extra), and a "commercial" from Annie's jewelry employer. The Blu-ray Disc features the same DVD content with additional deleted and extended scenes, a Made of Honor: Behind the Scenes of Bridesmaids featurette, a full song performance of Wilson Phillips' "Hold On", and a digital copy. iTunes Extras include Line-O-Rama, Deleted Scenes, Extended & Alternate Scenes & Cholodecki's Commercial.[39] Another edition commemorating the 100th anniversary of Universal Studios was released on September 4, 2012.

References [edit]

  1. ^ "Relativity Media LLC: Ryan Kavanaugh, CEO: Entertainment Creation, Movie Financing, Film Distribution & Production". March 7, 2011. Retrieved March 7, 2011. 
  2. ^ Kaufman, Amy (May 12, 2011). "Movie Projector: 'Priest' to flop, 'Bridesmaids' looks decent, but 'Thor' will pound both". Los Angeles Times (Tribune Company). Retrieved May 12, 2011. 
  3. ^ a b c Bridesmaids at Box Office Mojo
  4. ^ "Bridesmaids (2011)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2013-02-08. 
  5. ^ Fox, Margalit (November 5, 2010). "Jill Clayburgh Dies at 66; Starred in Feminist Roles". The New York Times. 
  6. ^ "Box Office Shocker: 'Bridesmaids' Passing 'Knocked Up' as Judd Apatow's Highest-Grossing Movie". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 16, 2012. 
  7. ^ "Bridesmaids (2011)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved May 16, 2012. 
  8. ^ "'Bridesmaids' Effect: Why Female Comedies Are Making Comeback". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 16, 2012. 
  9. ^ "'Bridesmaids' Breathes Life into Women's Comedy". Third Age. Retrieved May 16, 2012. 
  10. ^ a b c d e f "Could Judd Apatow and Kristen Wiig's 'Bridesmaids' Nab an Oscar?". SFLuxe.com. December 19, 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-22. 
  11. ^ Keegan, Rebecca (May 8, 2011). "Kristen Wiig, so weird on 'SNL,' goes (somewhat) normal for 'Bridesmaids'". Los Angeles Times. p. 2. Retrieved 2011-11-22. 
  12. ^ Carmon, Irin (May 16, 2011). "Bridesmaids Overperforms, Fucks The Haters". Jezebel.com. Retrieved 2011-11-22. 
  13. ^ a b c d e "Production Notes: Locations and Designs". CinemaReview.com. Retrieved 2011-12-23. 
  14. ^ "Bridesmaids (2011)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved July 19, 2012. 
  15. ^ "Bridesmaids". Metacritic. Retrieved May 16, 2011. 
  16. ^ Ebert, Roger (May 11, 2011). "Bridesmaids". The Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved May 16, 2011. 
  17. ^ Bayer, Jeff. Bridesmaids. The Scorecard Review, May 13, 2011.
  18. ^ Tami Winfrey Harris (May 17, 2011). "Bridesmaids: Can an Apatow Movie Pass the Bechdel Test?". Retrieved 2011-12-03. 
  19. ^ Owen Gleiberman. Midnight in Paris becomes Woody Allens all time biggest hit. How the heck did that happen. Hala Movie, July 13, 2011.
  20. ^ Gray, Brandon. Weekend Report: 'Transformers' Claims Independence Gross Record. Box Office Mojo, July 3, 2011.
  21. ^ Rosen, Christopher (July 1, 2011). "Bridesmaids Officially the Biggest Judd Apatow Film Ever". Movieline. Retrieved August 20, 2012. 
  22. ^ a b Subers, Ray. Weekend Report: 'Thor' Holds on to Throne, 'Bridesmaids' a Strong Second. Box Office Mojo, May 16, 2011.
  23. ^ Sehgal, Ujala. Box Office Roundup: 'Bridesmaids' Tops Expectations. The Atlantic. May 15, 2011.
  24. ^ "'Bridesmaids,' 'Tree of Life,' 'Hugo' in AFI's top 10 films of 2011". Los Angeles Times. December 11, 2011. Retrieved December 11, 2011. 
  25. ^ Kilday, Gregg (January 3, 2012). "Art Directors Nominate Movies as Different as 'Harry Potter' and 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 15, 2012. 
  26. ^ Gallo, Phil (May 17, 2012). "Backbeat: Rolfe Kent Receives Career Achievement Honor at BMI Film and TV Awards". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 9, 2012. 
  27. ^ "17th Annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards (2012)". Critics' Choice Awards. December 13, 2011. Retrieved December 13, 2011. 
  28. ^ [1]
  29. ^ "welcome to the Las Vegas film critics society". Lvfcs.org. Retrieved 2013-02-08. 
  30. ^ Pond, Steve (December 11, 2011). "'The Artist' Wins Another: NY Film Critics Online". Reuters. Retrieved December 11, 2011. 
  31. ^ Abramovitch, Seth (May 1, 2012). "'Bridesmaids,' 'Hunger Games' Top MTV Movie Awards Nominations". MTV. MTV Networks. Archived from the original on May 1, 2012. Retrieved May 1, 2012. 
  32. ^ "2011 NEWNOWNEXT AWARDS – Next Must-See Movie". Logo TV Awards. Retrieved October 3, 201. 
  33. ^ Tapley, Kristopher (December 26, 2011). "'Tree of Life' leads with 7 nods from Online Film Critics Society". HitFix. 
  34. ^ "People's Choice Awards 2013 Nominees". PeoplesChoice.com. Retrieved 2013-02-08. 
  35. ^ "PGA Announces Theatrical Motion Picture And Long-Form Television Nominations For 2012 PGA Awards" (Press release). Producers Guild of America. January 3, 2011. Retrieved January 5, 2011. 
  36. ^ "SAG Awards (Film) 2011: Complete List of Nominations". Goldderby.com. 2012-01-29. Retrieved 2013-02-08. 
  37. ^ Ng, Philiana (July 19, 2011). "Teen Choice Awards 2011: 'Pretty Little Liars,' Rebecca Black Added to List of Nominees". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved 2011-07-27. 
  38. ^ "2012 WAFCA Award Winners - The Washington DC Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA)". Dcfilmcritics.com. Retrieved 2013-02-08. 
  39. ^ "Bridesmaids – DVDActive/News". DVDActive. July 22, 2011. Retrieved 2011-09-20. 

External links [edit]

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