AVENGING ANGELS
The female revenge movie has re-emerged
There’s nothing funny about being lied to by a man, but The Other Woman tries to have some fun with the dilemma.
A man’s wife (Leslie Mann), his girlfriend (Cameron Diaz) and his something on the side (Kate Upton) all discover their cheater is seeing somebody else. Instead of bickering, they join forces to exact a punishment worthy of some giggles.
Postmedia’s Bob Thompson picks Top Five female revenge comedies: 1. The First Wives Club (1996)
Few in Hollywood expected Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn and Diane Keaton to bond so effectively, but they did in this bit of fun. It focuses on their wishful thinking revenge plots against their ex-husbands who divorced them for younger women. At the conclusion, ex-wives everywhere smile knowing why. 2. Thelma & Louise (1991)
OK, so comedy is mostly interspersed with lots of drama and the story doesn’t have a happy ending. Still, Ridley Scott’s road picture features a droll Susan Sarandon (Louise) and delightful Geena Davis (Thelma) who are on the lam after they shoot a rapist. Bonuses: The red 1966 Thunderbird and a shirtless Brad Pitt saying, “Howdy” as a highway robber. 3. Legally Blonde (2001)
Pink is the new black. Well, sort of. Reese Witherspoon is the seemingly superficial Elle Woods, who follows her former boyfriend to Harvard Law School to prove she belongs. We learn not to judge a fashion book by its cover thanks to a winning Witherspoon and a scene-stealing Jennifer Coolidge as Elle’s beauty shop pal. 4. Nine to Five (1980)
Jane Fonda completed her transition from radical to mainstream with this role. She plays an innocent secretary who joins forces with her colleagues (Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton) when they kidnap their sexist boss (Dabney Coleman), then revamp office protocol with positive results. It’s business as unusual, but it works thanks to Fonda, Tomlin and Parton. 5. Waitress (2007)
Keri Russell had already established herself as the lead in the series Felicity and with a high-profile costarring role opposite Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible III when she took on this part in the low-budget flick. She plays Jenna, a waitress in a southern diner coping with a jerk of a husband and a pregnancy she doesn’t want. As defined by a spunky Russell, Jenna just might find a way out through desserts. Subtle yet disarming, the movie works because Russell does.