Many horror and sci-fi films play with themes drawn from our treatment of nonhuman animals and the natural world. From the Night of the Living Dead to the Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies, and on through pure exploitation and extreme cinema, the subtexts are often hard to miss — a focus on vulnerability, powerlessness, instrumental use.
Bad Moms is a movie to root for. Starring a hugely talented, nearly all-female cast, aimed squarely at a neglected demographic, and addressing issues that surely resonate with audiences, you want so, so badly for it succeed.
It brings me no great pleasure to report that, apart from a few big laughs, it does not.
Part of an ongoing effort to watch each of the films in Roger Ebert’s Great Movies series. The introduction and full list can be found here.
“It is a tale of temple bells, sounding at sunset before the image of Buddha; it is a tale of love and lovers; and it is a tale of tears.”
I have never seen a full episode of Girls.
I say this at the outset not to demonstrate my hipness or lack thereof, but as a statement of fact that’s relevant here.
Online or in print, virtually all discussions about the work of Lena Dunham – noted screenwriter/director/actress/TV star/author/astronaut (probably) – seem to end up being about Dunham herself.