By biological fate, we all have mums. Some good, and some bad. The film Bad Moms (or Bad Mums for us Aussies) is a love letter to all those mums who try to be good. Written by two men, Jon Lucas and Scott Moore (who both directed), and being from the perspective of a child, this notion of the movie being a love letter is solidified this even more. The film is presented in a way many can relate to when they reflect on all the things their mother has done for them.
This film does a good job of representing the struggles of motherhood in today’s age compared to other films, and doesn’t need the backdrop of Mother’s Day to achieve this. It also provides a fair few laughs along the way – while not re-inventing the wheel, it’s funny enough and heart warming enough in places to work.
The film is supported well by its big name cast: main character Amy (Mila Kunis) and her friends Kiki (Kristen Bell) and Carla (Kathryn Hahn) provide most of the laughs, but the best performance goes to Gwendolyn (Christina Applegate) who plays a great villain. It’s hard to be both funny and reviled, but Applegate can achieve that, and she does that in this film. While Mila Kunis isn’t outstanding in the lead role, she has enough natural charisma to get by and is most natural in the more outlandish scenes. Kathryn Hahn has proved herself to be a go-to for comic relief and continues well in that role in this movie.
Lucas, and Moore also brought the material to life well, not over complicating it too much but knowing when to focus on the right moments. One slow-mo sequence was especially well used by the pair. The main criticism of this film has to be how much sugar and happy feelings they tried to force into the ending, they just couldn’t resist some well worn cliches. The other main criticism is the romantic interest subplot which was lazy to the point of redundant, but it was focused on so little it didn’t really hurt the film.
Overall, it is a fun movie for date night that both genders would enjoy, even good for an overdue movie day with your mum. It is fun with a good heart, and a message about the heros in most of our lives: our mums.
P.S I love you mum.
Rating 7/10 Genre 7.5/10
