Bridesmaids from hell: The ‘Bachelorette’ women aren’t much fun

If Bachelorette producers Will Ferrell and Adam McKay thought they’d build some buzz for the film by making it available on pay-per-view and iTunes prior to its September 7 release, they’d better think again. Although a relatively high demand download, it’s hard to believe that’s going to translate to big audience demand at the box office. This ill-conceived film bears more than a passing resemblance to 2011’s Bridesmaids, but that’s really the least of this movie’s problems. The biggest shortcoming is that it’s just not funny. Even intended to be a dark comedy, there’s no justification for the lack of laughs.

The premise is a rather flimsy one. Becky (Rebel Wilson) announces that she’s getting married and wants her high-strung best friend Regan (Kirsten Dunst) to be her maid-of-honor. Katie (Isla Fisher) and Gena (Lizzy Caplan), the two other bridesmaids, show up at the rehearsal dinner ready to rage. But Becky makes it clear that she’s not the party animal she was when the foursome first met in high school. Undeterred, Katie and Gena forge ahead, easily convincing Gena to join them in drinking excessively and snorting coke during an informal after-hours party. While joking around, they tear Becky’s wedding dress and end up on a half-hearted late-night search for a way to fix their mess.

The women end up crossing paths with the groomsmen, and Gena tries to reconcile with Clyde (Adam Scott), her ex from high school. Katie falls for Joe (Kyle Bornheimer), a nice guy who doesn’t want to take advantage of her because she’s drunk and high. Even the uptight Regan has a fling with the flippant Trevor (James Marsden), who tells her she needs to loosen up. In the end, they all grow up just a little bit but at that point, we’ve stopped caring about these characters.

The way the film is structured, Becky takes a backseat to all the action, and that’s a shame because Wilson is the funniest actress on the cast. Most of the storyline centers on Katie and Gena, the least likeable of the bridesmaids. The bossy Regan comes off as a caricature of self-involved and driven woman. While there’s a message here somewhere, the story is such a bore you just won’t care about figuring it out.