In screenwriting team Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith’s big screen adaptation of Amanda Brown’s novel Legally Blonde, Reese Witherspoon taught Jennifer Coolidge (a.k.a. Stiffler’s mom) how to “bend and snap” men into submission by offering them the most flattering view of their figures. However, while Witherspoon’s ditzy character’s transformation from sorority bimbo to Harvard law student garnered critical acclaim and award nominations, in recycling their Blonde script into the far more degrading House Bunny, McCullah Lutz and Smith offer us a film that’s all about the proverbial “bend” with none of the refreshing “snap” of Blonde’s witty dialogue. Although I didn’t worship Legally Blonde as much as most viewers, I still feel it’s a frothy, forgettable, and escapist film that served its purpose brilliantly in making us laugh after the tragic events of 9/11 (when it was re-released specifically for that purpose the second time that year) mostly due to Witherspoon’s undeniable charm. Cut to seven years later and likewise the similarly themed Bunny benefits from the vastly underrated Anna Faris. She first caught my attention with her scene-stealing turn in Lost in Translation (until I realized that Sofia Coppola most likely modeled her on Cameron Diaz which makes the caricature seem a bit mean-spirited) and later impressed me again as one of the brightest additions to the final season of television’s hit show Friends.
In Strange Wilderness director Fred Wolf’s House Bunny (produced by Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison Productions), Faris is cast as Shelley Darlingson, a Playboy Bunny who’s ousted from Hef’s mansion the morning after she turns twenty-seven. No longer able to lounge around in bikinis at the pool, flirt with celebrities, shop on Hef’s dime or drive the company’s pink Prius, Shelley eventually lands in jail after being mistaken for a prostitute, which offered the writers the first opportunity to gently season their lighthearted comedy with a subtle commentary about Playboy’s objectification of women, yet they missed the mark completely. Eventually, Shelley lands back on her stiletto heels and after a series of dubious but entertaining events, she becomes the unlikely house mother of Zeta — a seven-member, socially awkward college sorority where the girls (including The Rocker’s likable Emma Stone and Charlie Bartlett’s Kat Dennings) have one last chance to recruit a total of thirty pledges to save their house. Confident she can use her Playboy training to good use in making Zeta both popular and boy-friendly to the rest of the school, Shelley gives the girls a sexy makeover, teaching them to flirt, tease, and trick their way into becoming the school’s own mini Playboy Mansion (View Trailer).
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Article comments
1 - El Bicho
But how do you really feel? Don't hold back. Very good review.
2 - Jen
Ha ha, yes, I know-- let's just say, I was the first one out of my seat at the screening (though I think most critics were right behind me) and I avoided the PR note-takers altogether to make a bee-line for my car. The only other time I did that at a screening was for last year's unintentionally hilarious Love in the Time of Cholera.
Not to mention, that that "bend and snap" line had already popped into my head just ten minutes into the movie.
Hmm, maybe I've been inspired by all of you other wonderful Blogcritics to get out of my shell a bit? Too bad it was Faris's "Shelley" that was the culprit since she's so talented.
Thanks for reading and the compliment-- you're a wonderful critic so it means a lot.
3 - Jordan Richardson
Bloody hell, this movie looks all kinds of awful. Thanks for saving me the trouble!
4 - Jen
No, problem, Jordan. Happy to take one for the team movie-wise! :)
5 - Jen
not sure how that extra comma got in there at the beginning but oh well... maybe I'm still recovering from the film.
6 - Derek Fleek
I couldn't tell who the target audience was, whether it be hormone-crazed men or early teenage girls. The marketing here was a problem, and the fact that you provided the movie with an infallible "skip it" warning printed on the cover saved me a few bucks and 97 precious minutes of my life. Thank you and great review Jen.
7 - Jen
Thanks, Derek and you're right-- bad marketing all the way!
8 - Brentwood
Um-m-m-m-m-----it's a cute, funny little comedy. No need to get all four-syllable on us. It's not designed to be "Schindler's List." Most other reviewers seem to have gotten this point.There is a legitimate place for funny and sweet.
9 - Jen
Hi Brentwood. Thanks for your comment. Anna Faris rules but the movie-- not so much. Glad you enjoyed the film but actually most reviewers were disappointed with it as well (check out the major newspaper sites or Rotten Tomatoes for proof). Obviously it's not Schindler's List which is a good thing since there can only be one of those and if all movies were like that it'd be too depressing to hit the cinema anymore!
I totally agree with you that there's a legitimate place for funny and sweet and tons of movies have done that much, much, much better like Never Been Kissed, 13 Going On 30, You've Got Mail, The Wedding Singer and definitely Legally Blonde etc.
Surprisingly, I'm one of the few critics who didn't hate Made of Honor or 27 Dresses so I always stick up for cute little comedies that are worthwhile! There's another one of these films coming up in a few weeks that I think you'll enjoy even more than Bunny so stay tuned. As a critic I'm not allowed to discuss it yet but let's just say it's a female film that's sweet, funny, and treats its characters and audiences a bit better than this one did.