Life of the Party (2018)

Film: Life of the Party
Stars: Melissa McCarthy, Molly Gordon, Gillian Jacobs, Maya Rudolph, Matt Walsh, Julie Bowen, Luke Benward, Jacki Weaver, Stephen Root
Director: Ben Falcone
Oscar History: No nominations
Snap Judgment Ranking: 2/5 stars

Melissa McCarthy has been a proper movie star now for about 7 years, ever since she stole the show from a slew of (then) more famous actresses in Bridesmaids, scoring an Oscar nomination for her role as Megan and transforming that into superstardom.  Since then, she's only once come close to the magic of Bridesmaids (that'd be Spy), but has been a persistent, bankable presence at the box office.  Her films regularly are profitable, perhaps in part because they aren't particularly expensive, and in particular she's become noted for her collaborations with her husband, actor/director Ben Falcone.  This is their third outing together, and so far they have yet to hit the mark.  Unfortunately, that streak continues with this picture.

(Spoilers Ahead) Life of the Party focuses on Deanna (McCarthy), a middle-aged woman whose life has largely been being a devoted wife-and-mother to her husband Dan (Walsh) and daughter Maddie (Gordon).  After dropping their daughter off at school, Dan admits that he has been having an affair with local real estate magnate Marcie Strong (Bowen), and wants a divorce.  This leads to a quick decision by Deanna to go back and complete her degree, wanting to take a course in archaeology, with her befriending her daughter's sorority, particularly another slightly older student named Helen (Jacobs) and romancing a handsome young student named Jack (Benward).  Along the way, she relates a bit better to her daughter, her parents, and to herself, as she owns her power and starts to create a better future for herself as a single person.

The film is pretty generic, but that frequently works for comedy's with a comedienne as talented as McCarthy.  After all, some of the better comedies of someone like Myrna Loy or Cary Grant were also pretty flimsy when it came to plot and they worked out fine.  The problem lies in the direction and writing of the film, and perhaps most importantly, the story-boarding, because Life of the Party doesn't really seem to have a point-of-view.  The film unfolds with Deanna's seemingly perfect relationship with her daughter being in jeopardy as Deanna becomes more popular than Maddie, but that lasts for only about six minutes before (inexplicably) the teeth come out of that plot and they're best buddies.  The same could be said for her relationship with her ex-husband, where he acts almost staggeringly cruel to her, to a comedic point that feels improbable (no one is that mean to someone they share a child with, certainly not in front of that child).  There's a scene late in the picture where Deanna comes across deliberately cruel billboards in front of her ex-husband's second wedding reception that read "Better Life, Better Wife," which seems preposterous to think he would do that and still maintain even a somewhat healthy relationship with his daughter, which he purportedly does.  Deanna isn't cruel or even particularly unattractive, so this feels like just lazy, directionless plotting to feed the next comedic set piece.

McCarthy is a game performer, and too funny for this movie to suck, and she was smart enough to hire a great supporting cast (particularly Rudolph as her supportive, horny best friend), but it's time to admit that she should be giving better than this to her fans.  It might sound cruel, but honestly-Ben Falcone has not proven himself an adept director of his own wife.  Throughout the movie, they confuse where they want to take this character-is she growing, or finding she was fine all along?  Is her May/December romance real, or just hormonal?  Is her daughter angry at her (or her father), or is she just happy-go-lucky?  These are issues you should have a perspective on by the time the credits roll, and that you don't shows a sincere failing in the writing and direction of this picture.  McCarthy is a good actress, and when paired with a strong director (Paul Feig, presumably Nicole Holofcener later this year), she can give a dynamite performance in a funny film.  But Ben Falcone can't deliver on that front, and they're both hurting their brands by continuing to try in a field they continually fail.