Sisters

Starring: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Ike Barinholtz, James Brolin, Dianne Wiest, John Cena, John Leguizamo, Bobby Moynihan, Madison Davenport, Rachel Dratch, Samantha Bee, Chris Parnell
Directed by: Jason Moore
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy
2015

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Two very different sisters (Tina Fey, Amy Poehler) reunite for one last party at their parents' house before they sell it.

Review:

Tim: I have to admit I was a bit skeptical heading into Sisters. It looked decent, but the last Tina Fey-Amy Poehler collaboration I saw- Baby Mama, was a very bad movie. Luckily, that's not the case this time around. This movie will never be considered a classic comedy, but it's a solid, funny, entertaining film.

The biggest appeal is obviously getting to see Fey and Poehler together. It's so obvious they are great friends in real life and they have genuine chemistry on screen. They play off each other so well and are so comfortable with each other. The audience feeds off the energy they create. I never actually believed they were related, but that's a minor quibble. They are both very funny in this film.

The supporting cast is fairly strong. I liked seeing James Brolin and Dianne Wiest as their parents, but they weren't really afforded anything interesting to do. Their talents were wasted outside of one or two fun moments. John Leguizamo is always a nice addition to a cast and I enjoyed him here. Maya Rudolph continues to underwhelm me. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed Ike Barinholtz. He might give the best performance of the film. He squeezes every ounce out of the role he was given and elevates the scenes he's in. I walked away from this movie feeling incredibly impressed by him and his comedic timing. Bobby Moynihan was fairly annoying, but he's given so much to do that several of his jokes land. I liked his performance more as the film went on, but I still didn't love it. John Cena shows up, once again proving he's very effective in small roles. As a whole, the cast was better than I expected it would be.

The script is a little weak, as it really just serves to move an eclectic group of individuals together for one big party. The script has plot holes and cliches, but it does achieve its purpose of creating a memorable party environment for the expected shenanigans to take place. There's a lot of jokes throughout this movie, and enough of them connect for me to consider this a worthwhile comedy. There aren't a ton of belly laughs, but there were some exceptionally funny moments. I was fairly entertained throughout the film. I didn't really love any of the characters, but the actors playing them clearly had fun with their parts and that shows up on screen. Their energy was truly contagious.

When you are dealing with a good movie like Sisters, I always feel a bit torn. I enjoyed the film and am happy it was entertaining and funny. However, the movie is only good- there were plenty of opportunities for the movie to be better. You could take a pessimistic view and harp on all the flaws. However, comedies are very difficult, and so when one delivers like this one does, I believe you have to celebrate it and rejoice about the level of quality. You always hope movies will be great, but the majority of them aren't. There is still a place for solid movies like this one.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Baby Mama