{"id":22152,"date":"2021-02-11T18:02:42","date_gmt":"2021-02-12T02:02:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=22152"},"modified":"2021-02-11T18:02:42","modified_gmt":"2021-02-12T02:02:42","slug":"barb-star-go-to-vista-del-mar-provides-some-bizarre-sights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=22152","title":{"rendered":"BARB &#038; STAR GO TO VISTA DEL MAR Provides Some Bizarre Sights"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/24_0007_B-merged.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15337\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>This title from Lionsgate is available on most\nstreaming-on-demand platforms Friday, February 12<sup>th<\/sup>. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Back in 2011, <em>Bridesmaids<\/em> exploded on the scene and\nbecame one of the biggest hits of the year, landing the movie\u2019s co-writers\nAnnie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig Oscar-nominations for their hilarious script.\nNearly a decade later, the pair have penned the new comedy, <em>Barb &amp; Star\nGo to Vista Del Mar<\/em>. The creators have taken a completely different tone\nthis time out, veering towards eye-popping colors, sight gags and even the odd\nmusical number. Admittedly, the same kind of accolades and awards aren\u2019t in\nthis film\u2019s future and the gags are hit and miss. Still, it does provide a\nhandful of enjoyably bizarre moments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/barb-and-star-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-22154\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Single, middle-aged best friends Barb (Annie Mumolo) and Star\n(Kristen Wiig) spend their days working together in Nebraska, chatting to each\nother endlessly and often to the annoyance of those around them. After a bad\nbreak, the two begin to feel that they\u2019ve lost their spark in life. They decide\nto leave their comfort zone and visit wild and exotic Vista Del Mar, Florida.\nLittle do they know that a pale-skinned supervillain (also played by one of the\nstars) has made sinister plans from her secret base to wipe out the entire town\nduring the upcoming Seafood Jam celebration. When the oblivious Barb and Star\nstrike up a close relationship with the evil mastermind\u2019s lovelorn accomplice, Edgar\n(Jamie Dornan), the new friendship adds tension to their personal relationship\nand potential danger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/barb-and-star-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-22155\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of the most immediately striking things about this\nproduction are the striking colors on display. This is an amusingly loud film\nin which every garish shirt seems to explode off of the screen. Even in the\nopening number set in Nebraska, the neighborhood colors literally pop. The\nvisuals continue during the elaborate musical numbers later in the film, which\nfeature cast members and hotel staff dancing and singing in the lobby. As for\nthe songs themselves, the highlight may actually come during Edgar\u2019s ode to seagulls\nin the sand. This bit includes some funny lyrics and entertainingly\nfake-looking prop birds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of course, the leads are essential to this story and\nco-stars Mumolo and Wiig have excellent onscreen rapport. The performers seem\nto improvise and the asides and odd non-sequiturs from the leads often result\nin a chuckle. The movie also isn\u2019t afraid to go on some complete tangents.\nThere are some rambling discussions about the character\u2019s troubled pasts and\nplays on romance film cliches, but some bits do lend unpredictability to the\nproceedings. There are plenty of head-scratching, weird moments that are a\nsurprise even if they\u2019re over in a flash and only referred to again in passing.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/barb-and-star-05.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-22156\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Alas, this is a movie packed with jokes and there are just\nas many blunt gags that don\u2019t hit the mark. The story focuses on the\nrelationship between Barb and Star and naturally this is important in order for\naudiences to relate to the leads. However, one can\u2019t help but think that the\nvillain and her young helper Yoyo (Reyn Doi) could have been more directly\ninvolved in the funny business. They\u2019re kept at a significant distance for the\nfirst two acts of the story, which is unfortunate given the strong impression\nthey make early on. The climax itself isn\u2019t quite as grand, exciting or funny\nas it could have been if the foes had played a larger role onsite setting it\nall up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/barb-and-star-04.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-22157\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This movie encourages its middle-aged leads to step out of\ntheir comfort zone and experience new things. Clearly, the writers and stars of\n<em>Barb &amp; Star Go to Vista Del Mar<\/em> have attempted to the do the same\nwith this comedic endeavor. In the end, their efforts are admirable, if uneven.\nHowever, if you need extra comedy in your life or are yearning for a brief escape\nto a colorful locale, you may still get a chuckle or two out of this trip. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This title from Lionsgate is available on most streaming-on-demand platforms Friday, February 12th. Back in 2011, Bridesmaids exploded on the scene and became one of the biggest hits of the year, landing the movie\u2019s co-writers Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig Oscar-nominations for their hilarious script. Nearly a decade later, the pair have penned the new [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":22153,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[206,1538,2280,2281,2282,2283,2284,2285,2286,4660,7683,10271,11899,12473,14429,16901,18513,23894],"class_list":["post-22152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-movie-reviews","tag-206","tag-annie-mumolo","tag-barb-star-go-to-vista-del-mar","tag-barb-star-go-to-vista-del-mar-film-review","tag-barb-star-go-to-vista-del-mar-movie-review","tag-barb-star-go-to-vista-del-mar-review","tag-barb-and-star-go-to-vista-del-mar","tag-barb-and-star-go-to-vista-del-mar-movie-review","tag-barb-and-star-go-to-vista-del-mar-review","tag-comedy","tag-florida","tag-jamie-dornan","tag-kristen-wiig","tag-lionsgate","tag-musical","tag-resort","tag-slapstick","tag-wacky"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22152","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=22152"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22152\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=22152"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=22152"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=22152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}