A Bad Moms Christmas

Last night I saw A Bad Moms Christmas, starring Mila Kunis and Kathryn Hahn.

Amy (Kunis) is determined to have a normal Christmas without interference from her mother Ruth (Christine Baranski), who is visiting for the holiday. Simultaneously, her friends Carla (Hahn) and Kiki (Kristen Bell) are having issues with their own mothers, also in town.

The film, a sequel to last year's Bad Moms, focuses not on the drama of other parents, but solely on the complicated family ties that bind or break during the Christmas season. I'd love to say this was complete fluff and nonsense, but the story actually touches on some very real issues for women.

From one mother who has no boundaries to another who is a financial mess, to the seriousness of a mom who doesn't think anything her daughter does is good enough, the film is bound to touch a nerve with many.

That aside, it's also laugh-out-loud funny throughout.

Kathryn Hahn is a national treasure. I feel the need to say that, though it's probably already been said. Her timing, her physical comedy, her impeccable delivery—all hysterical, especially when she falls for exotic dancer Ty (Justin Hartley). 

The laughs are plenty, the situations (while intentionally inflated) are relatable and at the core of the movie is a lot of heart.

You could do worse at the theater this holiday season.

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The Visit

Tonight I saw The Visit, starring Olivia DeJonge and Deanna Dunagan.

Becca (DeJonge) and her brother Tyler (Ed Oxenbould) have never met their grandparents. Their mother left their house long ago when she fell in love with their father and never went back. Now, years after their father abandoned them, they want to meet their grandkids.

Reluctantly, Mom (Kathryn Hahn) agrees to let them go for a visit while she and her new boyfriend take off on a luxury cruise.

A train ride later, the kids are romping around the house where their mother grew up, asking Nana (Dunagan) and Pop Pop (Peter McRobbie) about their mother when she was young. It's an understandably sore subject, but is that the only reason they're being cagey?

I can't say more without spoiling (yes, there's a classic Shyamalan twist at the end that I figured out early on), but I will say that this movie was legitimately scary/disturbing. The kids do a great job (though Oxenbould's lisp gets annoying) of not being too exaggerated in their fears, and some clever dialogue helps make it more believable (when you hear "Katy Perry" you'll know what I mean).

Though I'm over the whole, "I'll set up a camera and we'll see what scary footage we get" trick, the elderly grandparents are a pair I'd never want to stay with under any circumstances.

What makes the film more effective is the genuine sentimentality that this broken family displays. Adults were hurt, and in the process kids got hurt, and that's never okay. Their care for one another helps us care about their well-being.

If you need a this-could-really-happen sort of terror this Halloween season, you could do worse than this film.

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