Girls Trip (2017)

“Girls Trip” stars Regina Hall, Jada Pinkett Smith, Tiffany Haddish, and Queen Latifah.  Released on July 21, 2017, the film has four friends traveling to New Orleans and rediscovering their wild sides.

The film is directed by Malcolm D. Lee, who also directed films such as The Best Man, Roll Bounce, and Soul Men.  Normally, I could’ve just wait to take my mother to see this, but since I got caught up with the other new releases, I decided to see this one for myself to find out whether or not she’ll have a blast with it.  Even if it meant sitting in a sold out theater for two hours.  Based on the marketing alone, I can clearly tell what I was going to expect from this film: friends hanging out and a whole lot of sex jokes.  It definitely sounds like your typical R-rated comedy that’s filled with raunchy humor and explicit language, but it somehow managed to win over both critics and audiences alike compared to the other raunchy comedies that we had earlier this year.  After experiencing it for myself, I can definitely see why.  It’s funny, but it’s also heartwarming at the same time.

Pros:
The main leads delivered some great chemistry together, with Tiffany Haddish stealing the entire show as Dina.

Almost every humorous part in the film was downright hilarious from start to finish, including Haddish’s never-ending barrage of sexual references.

The portrayal of its themes about the values of friendship was solid.

Director Malcolm D. Lee did a decent job at balancing the comedy with the drama, as well as making the main characters likable.

Cons:
The story was predictable and a bit preachy at times.

Some of the jokes can get a bit overboard for those who don’t want to listen to sexual references every few seconds or so.

Final Thoughts: Its flawed plot couldn’t prevent “Girls Trip” from having the time of its life.  With its likable main leads, great humor, and its respectable themes about friendship, not only was it a great time at the movies, but it’s also the type of R-rated comedy that isn’t afraid to show off its dramatic side.  I would highly recommend it to those who wanted a few laughs and to those who are looking for a movie to see during girls night.

B