Already a box office smash in the States, the raunchy comedy Girls Trip is a surprisingly smart and sentimental effort. It can be overwhelmingly silly (and very fun), but Girls Trip has a lot more going on than just sex jokes and drunken antics.
Foremost among the film's four protagonists is Ryan (Regina Hall), a successful self-help author who is referred to as "the second coming of Oprah." An invitation to speak at Essence Festival in New Orleans prompts Ryan to organise a weekend away with her "Flossy Posse," who she hasn't seen in half a decade. Gossip blogger Sasha (Queen Latifah), tightly wound medical professional and mother of two Lisa (Jada Pinkett-Smith), and the fiercely loyal and hilarious Dina (Tiffany Haddish) round out the exceptional cast.
Some surprising news (surprising at least to Sasha, Lisa, and Dina) about Ryan's husband casts a pall over the trip, but spurs the ladies toward an adventure of self discovery and re-kindled sisterhood.
On the surface, the narrative is nothing new, but from an early scene in which Ryan gives her bubbly agent Liz (Kate Walsh) a lecture on using black slang, it's clear that there's more to it. Arguably one the reasons that audiences have flocked to this movie in the U.S. is because it gives representation to people of colour, and particularly women of colour in ways that are authentic and relatable.
From the setting in New Orleans and Essence Festival (an annual festival devoted to African-American culture and African-American women in particular), to the very strong casting and the film's themes of sisterhood, independence, and self-love, to the fantastic soundtrack featuring the likes of Missy Elliott, Aretha Franklin, and Lizzo, Girls Trip is a celebration of the strength and diversity of black women.
Sometimes raucous and raunchy to the point of absurdity, and at other times sentimental and sweet without being patronising, Girls Trip is effortlessly watchable. It does have its shortcomings, though. A few moments fall flat or go too far, the comedically gifted Regina Hall struggles a bit in the more reserved first act, and it's about half an hour too long, but those are forgivable sins.
When the movie gets going, Hall finds her groove and brings out the gleeful shrillness that she does so well. Queen Latifah delivers the strongest emotion, and Jada Pinkett-Smith undergoes a transformation that is believable and charming. The shining star, though, is relative newcomer Tiffany Haddish. Her comic timing and physicality are top-notch, and audiences will fall in love with the unpredictable Dina from her first moments on-screen.
It remains to be seen how this film will fare in Australia, but it deserves to do well, if only so that we can have the opportunity to see more more movies like this that gives visibility to fresh and under-represented points of view. To end on a personal note, it has been a long time since I've seen a movie that made an audience laugh as hard and as consistently as this one did.
Girls Trip opens in Australian cinemas on Thursday August 31st.
