‘From the writers of The Hangover’ gives you a hint at what to expect from Spa Weekend that here replaces that films four male protagonists with four women who have been friends since they were at school together. It’s an opening montage that sets up Mel (later to be Isla Fisher) as the ‘troublemaker’ of the group.
A Spa Weekend involves….
Fast forward to the four as adults and Jane (Leslie Mann) is a single mother and successful lawyer, Coco (Michelle Bureau) also a divorced mum bitter that her ex-husband is with an older woman and Sophie (Anna Faris) a flaky employee harangued by her male boss even on the weekend. Meanwhile Mel, to the relief of the others, is off and about around the world leaving the other three to enjoy a stress free indulgent and relaxing spa weekend to celebrate Jane’s birthday. But Sophie, feeling guilty at them not having invited Mel, drops her a last minute notification thinking that it’s too late notice for her to turn up. So of course, she does turn up. Loud, brash and brazen with all the humility of Meghan Markle pushing her way to the front of a terminal illness charity photo call.
So at this point ‘and hilarity ensues’ as Mel’s lack of self-awareness sees her dragging the group into all manner of scrapes that includes a golf buggy chase, drunken parties and the inevitable burgeoning romance for Jane with the spa’s yoga teacher and the rekindling of romance between Coco and her ex-husband. So second act covers the various escapades the third act sees the four learn life lessons as they repair their fractured friendship with Mel.
Will it clean up at the box office?
Writer- director Jon Lucas and Scott Moore have form for these all-female films and its one that director Paul Feig has excelled but the four at the centre of this are tired stereotypes : the angry black woman, the down trodden female employee, the career woman too busy for love and the boisterous embarrassing friend. That’s not to say that they shouldn’t be there but the situations here pale in comparison with film such as the incomparable (and Oscar nominated), ‘Bridesmaids’ and even films like Pitch Perfect, Girls Trip and Clueless set a high bar for female led comedy and each of those have their lairy female but Isla Fisher’s Mel is an irritant and throwback to the outdated ‘ladette’ of the 1990’s more than anything and when a film needs to include a blooper reel over the credits it suggest that the cast perhaps enjoyed themselves more than the audience.
related feature : Sally James talking about Tiswas presenters…….and Jasper Carrott
related feature : Rebel Wilson’s fat contract
Here’s the Spa Weekend trailer……
