Rough Night
Year: 2017
Directed By: Lucia Aniello
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Kate McKinnon, Zoë Kravitz,
Jillian Bell and Ilana Glazer
Tagline: “Things go terribly wrong for a group of
girlfriends who hire a male stripper for a bachelorette party in Miami.”
RottenTomatoesScore: 46%
IMDbRating: 5.2/10
When a movie is tagged with the
description of “the female Hangover” you’re immediately going to one of two
places. One, that’s bullshit. Or two, wasn’t that Bridesmaids? Either way, take
it easy with The Hangover references people. That was a perfect storm of a
comedy movie, they couldn't even replicate the magic in two sequels and they
made the original!
No, this is not even close to a
‘Female Hangover’, however it is not without its moments. It’s got a talented
cast and Jillian Bell and Kate McKinnon are by far and away the funniest ones
of the bunch. I love Broad City and Ilana Glazer is phenomenal in that show,
but just didn’t shine through in this one. Zoë Kravitz, to me, is nothing more
than a could-have-been rock star’s daughter. Scarlett Johansson does her best
to hang, but the obvious nature of an A-list star in a genre that’s not usually
in her wheelhouse was too great to overcome. See, John Cusack in Hot Tub Time
Machine. Also, holy run-on-sentence Batman.
As I said, there were some funny
gags and cool castings throughout the film. I’m happy with the R-rating, more
comedies need to go that route these days. A lot of scenes just weren’t as
funny as they could have been. I do not understand the casting of Zoë Kravitz
and Scarlett Johansson. If they casted stand-ups or comedic personalities in
those roles, this movie could have really shined through and chemistry could
have actually worked and they could have cut together scenes that weren’t
stagnant. I’ll never understand that. If you have a movie based around friends
reuniting, perhaps you should have friends or at least acquaintances reunite.
Not this mismatch of talent. The funniest scenes in the films were the other
side of the coin with the men’s “bachelor party” starring Paul W. Downs along
with some very funny dudes. The problem with this movie, well one of the, is
their B-storyline was funnier than their main storyline. That’s an issue. Eric
Andre and the other bachelor’s created a great atmosphere and change-up to the
mains storyline and that’s what you’re supposed to have happen. It’s a great
joke and one of the few that work to its full potential. Actually, maybe the
only joke that works to its full potential. Unfortunately. There are funny moments
and if you got in expecting nothing, you’ll get a little something in return.
But expect literally nothing.
I’d have to agree with Rotten
Tomatoes on this one, although I’m surprised at the rating. I agree more with
the tag than the actual percentage of forty-six, “Rough Night’s gifted stars
are certainly good for some laughs, but their talents aren't properly utilized
in a scattered comedy that suffers from too many missed opportunities.” #Preach
Review and General Shenanigans Written By: Steve “Sandwich”
Hanisch 