Thunder Force (2021) - Movie Review

Over this blog’s lifespan, I have reviewed (almost) every film written and directed by comedian and Melissa McCarthy’s husband Ben Falcone. The only exception is Superintelligence from last year, and that was only because I legally couldn’t leave the house to see it when it came out (not that I’m exactly shedding tears about that development, given how lame the trailers made it look). While I can’t say I have any special affection for his films thus far, and I recognise him being one in a string of filmmakers who seemingly exist only to prop up their spouses, I can’t say I have any real hate for them either. Tammy was alright, The Boss had its fun-crazy moments, and Life Of The Party ultimately got a pass for having its heart in the right place. I am unable to be anywhere near as charitable with his latest, however.

Life Of The Party (2018) - Movie Review

The plot: After being told that her husband (Matt Walsh) is leaving her for another woman, Deanna (Melissa McCarthy) decides to take her life back into her own hands and do the one thing that she always wanted to do: Get her archeology degree. She enrols herself at the same college her daughter Maddie (Molly Gordon) is attending, and as she adjusts to college life as an older student, she discovers just how much she missed out on the first time round.

The Boss (2016) - Movie Review

I have grown weirdly out-of-sync with the rest of the world when it comes to cinema, specifically when it comes to Melissa McCarthy. It took a long while for me to get into her style of comedy and by the time I did, it was with Tammy, the film where people began to stop liking her. It’s some strange anti-hipster effect where I liked it only after it was cool. Whatever; if I liked all the films I’m supposed to like, not only would things get really boring but my annual list of critical disagreements wouldn’t even exist. Sure, Spy came around shortly after and we’re suddenly on the same page again, but it still feels like I’m stuck in the late phase of her career… yeah, we grow bored of people rather quickly in the Internet age. So, as part of some cosmic attempt to confuse me even further, her latest film has come out and it has somehow gotten an even worse overall reception than Tammy. Am I going to stick to my guns and find something to like about it, or will I join the pack and admit that Melissa McCarthy isn’t funny? Only one way to find out.