Written and Directed by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, Bad Moms is an ode to hard-working mothers everywhere, but especially a love-letter to the directors’ wives.
The film centers around three moms who are tired of trying to be perfect and living up to other’s expectation. The central character Amy Mitchell, played by the lovely Mila Kunis, is a working mother who, in her own words, is best at being late. She works 5 days of the week, even though she’s technically a part-time employee, she drives her kids to and from school, makes their lunches and breakfast and does their class projects, with little support from her husband. Not only does Amy Mitchell have to deal with the stress of being a good mother, employee and a crumbling marriage, she faces a new challenge when she defies the president of the PTA, Gwendolyn played by Christina Applegate. With all of her responsibilities and the demands of the PTA, Amy Mitchell decides to break free and take matters into her own hands. Along the way she meets two moms who more or less become her sidekicks, Carla played by Kathryn Hahn and Kiki played by Kristen Bell. Carla portrays what society might consider to be a somewhat promiscuous and negligent mother and Kiki is an over-worked stay-at-home mother who is a nervous wreck. Together these three ladies fight back against the elitist PTA moms who bully other parents.
The film stars an almost all female cast including Jada Pinkett Smith, Annie Mumolo, Clark Duke and David Walton. Martha Stewart and YouTube sensation Lilly Singh also make a cameo in the film giving fans a real treat. While trying to be all inclusive and non-heteronormative, the film puts almost all the responsibility on mothers as if stay-at-home dads were an anomaly or as lazy as Amy Mitchell’s husband. While the film is an ode to mothers, it might have been a more balanced and realistic narrative to show the dads who are involved in their children’s lives. Overall the film was fun and light-hearted and as a special surprise during the end credits, the leading ladies sit down and talk about their childhoods with their own mothers. Check out the film in theaters July 29th.
