Maura Atwood

Modern comedies often make fun of people in a way that is disturbing. The denial of the inherent worth of every human being, as God's infinitely loved, perfect-no-matter-what creation always disturbs me, but this -- in addition to "21 & Over" -- is the most deeply disturbing movie I have ever seen. I couldn't get through it, but I looked up the plot on Wikipedia and then checked the end for any sort of redeeming moment but there isn't nearly enough of one. When Regina tells Becky "you're beautiful," it's supposed to be a "kind friend moment." Any sort of genuine, kind friend would have made sure her friend knew a long time ago how beautiful she was. Because she IS. The three "friends" (who are all so cruel to each other) took the wedding dress, which is a symbol of a woman feeling beautiful, and trashed it "accidentally" repeatedly -- in a way that is supposed to be *funny*? We're supposed to laugh at how this perfectly beautiful woman is still being disrespected by the people she trusts? The movie ends with the three friends deciding for one second to "stop doing substances" and then immediately changing their minds. The message is that it's okay to screw up if you're on substances, because "ultimately, it's fun -- which is more important than having integrity, courage or kindness." A terrible movie, reinforcing destructive ideas that our culture already has: that it's okay to be selfish and weak. Everyone screws up, and that is okay -- but it's not okay to celebrate it and have an attitude of "this doesn't need to change."