Movie Review: Bad Moms (2016)

The movie stars Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell, Christina Applegate and Jada Pinkett Smith.

My wife wanted to see this movie with her girlfriends while it was at the theater. However, for a variety of reasons, she was unable to do that. So, when the movie became available through Netflix, I made sure to put it on top of my DVD list and ended up watching it with her last night.

I'm usually not a big fan of movies like this, mostly because, as a dad who helps with the housework, helps get the kids out the door in the morning and cooks just as many meals as my wife, I get a little offended by films that portray men as lazy and clueless. However, that being said, I did find I enjoyed watching this film.

To tell you the truth, as far as overall plot is concerned, the film really isn't significantly different from other movies in this genre. A young mother gets jilted by her husband, tries to adjust to single life with the help of her friends and, of course, falls in love with the only guy in town (Jay Hernandez) who isn't a clueless jerk. Despite this, the movie proved to be better than I thought.

I think the reason I still found I enjoyed this film is, even though the movie focuses on just the moms, the subjects it pokes fun of are things every parent can relate to. This includes the every changing parenting "rules," the constant fundraisers for school and other events, and the feeling you are underappreciated or aren't doing the right thing.

I also have to admit, some of the scenes in this movie were actually quite memorable. I personally loved the grocery store scene early on in the film and loved it whenever Amy (Kunis) decided to disobey the "rules" because, in many ways, even as a supposedly clueless and lazy dad, I found I could still relate to her. That connection made the movie fun to watch.

It would have been nice to see the movie acknowledge it's not just moms who make sacrifices for their kids and it will probably never be one of my favorites as a result of that. But, it was still a funny film that was worth watching once.

My Grade: B