If you’re looking for a belly laugh, Girls Trip might just deliver. Despite the film’s occasional absurdity, Girls Trip hits the mark as a feel-good flick about girl love, loyalty and fierce friendship.
The comedy stars Regina Hall as Ryan, Queen Latifah as Sasha, Jada Pinkett Smith as Lisa, and Tiffany Haddish, who steals the show as the unfiltered loose cannon of the group, Dina. The four college besties meet up after years of absence to reunite ‘The Flossy Posse’ and relive their glory days at the Essence Festival in New Orleans. Laughs and debauchery fuel the boozy weekend, though the girls are also hit with some hard truths about life and loyalty along the way.
Ryan, the most successful member of ‘The Flossy Posse’, plays one half of a famous TV couple preaching ‘You Can Have It All’ to her readers and followers. She claims to have it all: professional success, a healthy, loving relationship and the image to match. Unsurprisingly, it is discovered in New Orleans that Ryan’s life is far from perfect; we watch her struggle to come to terms with her sham marriage after revelations of her cheating husband surface.
The film carries an obvious message about the power of friendship to remind you of your worth, but there is also a message that promotes self-belief. This actually manages to come across quite genuinely, which makes the film all the more endearing. Director Malcolm D. Lee (Undercover Brother, Barbershop: The Next Cut) is able to showcase the complex nature of friendship, as Sasha and Ryan attempt to recover from a falling out from years gone by – the result of a failed attempt to mix friendship with business.
The ‘drunken reunion’ comedy sub genre is home to many modern films, which have achieved varying degrees of success over the years. It’s the exceptional casting of strong female leads and their undeniable on-screen chemistry that helps set Girls Trip apart from many others in this genre. What you see is what you get here, and what you get can be comparable to The Hangover in terms of themes and obscenity. Thankfully, the choice of empowered female leads comes across real, refreshing and relatable– so much so that the overdone plot and at times OTT vulgarity is mostly forgiven.
A combination of cheap jokes mixed in with genuine lough out loud moments, Girls Trip is a vibrant chick flick with heart. If you’re up for some unapologetic crudity and have a chance to get the girls together, you may have found your perfect Saturday night.
THE REEL SCORE: 7/10
