Bridesmaids

We really, really liked BRIDESMAIDS. We were prepared to hate it, actually. All we knew was it's supposed to be the male HANGOVER, and there's a scene where one of the girls takes a crap in the middle of the street. The only reason we watched it is because the director of one of my scripts asked me to.

It is actually a keenly observed comedy with heart, about how women deal with each other (and, occasionally, with men).

(It is also a very good advertisement for being born a man. No wonder orthodox Jewish men thank God every day that they were born male.)

I wrote earlier about director Paul Feig's Master Class and the "Bucket Brigade". YouTube's got an example of how Feig used improv in shooting the movie: it's a ten-minute bitchfest between Kirsten Wiig and thirteen-year-old Mia Rose Frampton (yes, that Frampton). Only half a minute made it into the movie, but what did was loose and convincing because it was impromptu. Feig and his colleagues (Steve Carell, Judd Apatow, Seth Rogen, etc.) do a lot of "plussing" on each other's scripts. Maybe that's why they're all on top of the charts.

Note to self: do not be afraid of improv. And leave enough time in the schedule for it.

(If this YouTube disappears, check it out on the Blu-Ray disc, or Google "longest argument Bridesmaids".)