At times just meh, and sometimes funny thanks to its supporting cast, SISTERS finds the dynamic comic duo of Amy Poehler and Tina Fey working a little TOO hard for laughs.
Amy is the responsible sister Maura, who teams up with her much more rowdy and irresponsible sibling Kate (Fey) to visit their parents in Florida.
Mom and Dad (Dianne Wiest and James Brolin, both badly underused here) have decided to sell their family home and retire, inspiring the girls to throw one LAST party.
Until the party actually starts, I didn't really think the film was very funny, diving pretty low for "Hangover" or "Bridesmaids" style laughs but falling very short. Smiles maybe, but no laughs.
But ONCE the party starts, things get a lot better.
Ike Barinholtz (Mad TV) is terrific as a neighbor who has a seriously hilarious incident with a music box, John Cena is a crackup as a massive drug dealer named Pazuzu, Bobby Moynihan (SNL) all but steals the movie as a high school friend who unwittingly does a massive amount of drugs and proceeds to act out for the entire party in increasingly laugh out loud fashion, Maya Rudolph is reliably good as the party guest who just wont take no for an answer and Rachel Dratch (SNL) is terrific as well.
I guess I just expect more from Fey and Poehler. Fey is such a great writer but she had no hand in the screenplay, which fails to give her much beyond the stereotypical "last wild party for a sister who has to grow up and be a mom to her teenage kid" role.
It could really use an editor too. At nearly two hours, its a whole lot of movie around a pretty thin story line.
Crude can be hilarious, but not sure I'd call SISTERS anything more than kind of funny, except for that music box scene, which IS hilarious and perfectly played by Poehler and Barinholtz. Their timing in that scene is a clinic on physical comedy and comic delivery.
Tune in for the party and tune out for the rest.
SISTERS gets a C.
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