Trailer Tuesday: Bridesmaids

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My sister is getting married this Saturday, and I'm a bridesmaid, so it's kind of appropriate that this week sees the South African debut of R-rated comedy Bridesmaids. Produced by The 40-Year-Old-Virgin and Knocked Up's Judd Apatow, Bridesmaids has been touted as the female equivalent of The Hangover, except with considerably more heart and likeable, identifiable characters.

Written by and starring Kristen Wiig, Bridesmaids centres on Annie (Wiig), who is struggling with disappointment in her professional and personal life. However, she hides her problems when her best friend Lillian (Maya Rudolph) gets engaged. Accepting the responsibility-heavy position of Maid of Honour, Annie discovers herself part of a mismatched group of bridemaids, including crass, aggressive Megan (Melissa McCarthy), saccharine Becca (Ellie Kemper), rich, dissatisfied Rita (Wendi McLendon-Covey) and ultra-glamorous Helen (Rose Byrne). Cue increasingly out of control bridal shenanigans during the lead-up to Lillian's big day.


What I like most about Bridesmaids, having finally watched the trailer, is the fact that the cast looks so refreshingly normal. In other words, they're not over-groomed, big name romcom stars, or modelled on the Sex & The City cast, with their cartoonish, Prada-and-Versace-bedecked lifestyles. These are the comically disparate, eccentric women that always seem to assemble come wedding time.

Bridesmaids opened in the United States on 13 May, and judging by the reviews, this is a chick flick that escapes the genre tag to have real comedy appeal for a mass audience. Girls and guys alike. For the record, Bridesmaids scored a stellar 89% Fresh rating on review aggregator site, Rotten Tomatoes. It apparently strikes that perfect (difficult) balance between being raunchy and heartfelt.


Bridesmaids opens in South Africa this Friday, 24 June. Women, however, can catch the film a few days early, thanks to Nu Metro's Girls' Night Out and Ster Kinekor's Girlfriends' Getaway. Bridesmaids will be screening at select cinemas around the country on Wednesday (Ster Kinekor) and Thursday (Nu Metro) evening, so take advantage.

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