Never underestimate the appeal of two modern day women, conversation, confessions and martinis, lots of martinis. Anna Kendrick as the go getter single mother Stephanie Smothers and Blake Lively as her saucy soon to be best friend Emily Nelson have great chemistry together. Their chatty scenes are easily the film’s finest moments.
These talks are stitched together via a sordid tale of insurance fraud and murder. There are some rather large plot holes and elements that make little sense but this is not meant to degrade the experience because this is a fine work of populist entertainment.
As such there are a substantial number of unifying moments that had the entire audience on the same page. This lead to a very desirable feeling of shared community. A dark room filled with lots of people who are all in on the joke.
A lot can be said for a film that doesn’t take itself or its audience too seriously. With the removal of the reality of evil, it’s just plain fun to have a laugh while hanging out with some truly awful people.
Rob Hudson
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