Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Latest
    • 3627. I Believe In Miracles (2015)
    • 3626. The Man With One Red Shoe (1985)
    • 3625. Ode To Joy (2019)
    • 3624. One Chance (2013)
    • 3623. Falling For Figaro (2020)
    • 3622. The Polka King (2017)
    • 3621. Spies In Disguise (2019)
    • 3620. Friendzone (2021)
    The Mad Movie Man
    • Home
    • Blog
      • All Posts
      • Best Of The Year
        • Best Of 2015
        • Best Of 2016
        • Best Of 2017
        • Best Of 2018
        • Best Of 2019
        • Best Of 2020
        • Best Of 2021
        • Best Of 2022
      • The Decade In Review
      • Box Office Analysis
      • James Bond
      • Oscars
      • RANKED
      • Star Wars
      • The Big Questions
      • Top 10
      • World Cinema
    • Ratings
      • Top 250
      • Top 100 Foreign Films
      • Bottom 50
      • 0 – 1.9
      • 2 – 3.9
      • 4 – 5.9
      • 6 – 7.9
      • 8 – 10
    • Genres
      • Action
      • Anthology
      • Animation
      • Christmas
      • Comedy
      • Crime
      • Documentary
      • Drama
      • Fantasy
      • Film-Noir
      • History
      • Horror
      • Kids’
      • Musical
      • Psychological
      • Romance
      • Sci-Fi
      • Short
      • Silent
      • Sport
      • Superhero
      • Survival
      • Thriller
      • Western
    • Release Year
      • 2020s
      • 2010s
      • 2000s
      • 1990s
      • 1980s
      • 1970s
      • 1960s
      • 1950s
      • 1940s
      • 1930s
      • 1920s
    • Country
      • Afghanistan
      • Argentina
      • Australia
      • Austria
      • Belgium
      • Brazil
      • Cambodia
      • Canada
      • Chile
      • China
      • Colombia
      • Costa Rica
      • Czechoslovakia
      • Czech Republic
      • Denmark
      • East Timor
      • Faroe Islands
      • Finland
      • France
      • Germany
      • Georgia
      • Greece
      • Hong Kong
      • Hungary
      • Iceland
      • India
      • Indonesia
      • Iran
      • Iraq
      • Ireland
      • Israel
      • Italy
      • Japan
      • Latvia
      • Lebanon
      • Laos
      • Malaysia
      • Mexico
      • New Zealand
      • Nigeria
      • North Korea
      • Norway
      • Paraguay
      • Peru
      • Philippines
      • Poland
      • Romania
      • Russia
      • Saudi Arabia
      • Singapore
      • South Korea
      • South Africa
      • Soviet Union
      • Spain
      • Sweden
      • Switzerland
      • Syria
      • Taiwan
      • Thailand
      • Turkey
      • Uganda
      • United Kingdom
      • United States
      • Uruguay
      • Vietnam
      • Zambia
    • About
    The Mad Movie Man
    You are at:Home»Review»2563. Life Of The Party (2018)

    2563. Life Of The Party (2018)

    0
    By The Mad Movie Man on May 25, 2019 100-109 mins, 2018, 6 - 7.9, Comedy, May 19, Movies Of 2019, Review, United States
    6.1 Not great
    • Acting 6.2
    • Directing 6.2
    • Story 5.9
    • User Ratings (0 Votes) 0

    Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolph, Gillian Jacobs

    Director: Ben Falcone

    Running Time: 104 mins


    Life Of The Party is an American film about a middle-aged woman who, after being asked for a divorce by her husband, decides to set her mind to studying as she returns to university to complete her degree.

    Of course reminiscent of Back To School starring Rodney Dangerfield for its premise, Life Of The Party wins at times with the odd bit of good comedy, as well as a pleasantly light-hearted atmosphere throughout. However, it doesn’t do much to differentiate itself from most college party movies, and the presence of an older protagonist is little more than a gimmick to make things seem a little fresher, but actually doesn’t prevent the film from being a rather underwhelming watch throughout.

    Let’s start on the bright side, with the fact that, while it’s hardly the world’s funniest comedy, there is the odd chuckle here and there in Life Of The Party. And when I say the odd chuckle, I mean that there are about 4 or 5 moderately funny jokes throughout. That’s a whole lot more than the worst comedies of all, so getting just one laugh out of the viewer is an achievement in itself, but it’s hardly the greatest endorsement for a film that’s meant to be a riotously funny watch.

    What the movie does have on its side is the fact that it’s not too vulgar, and not too juvenile. The one benefit of having a slightly more mature presence in the film in the form of Melissa McCarthy, the film generally avoids descending into the depths of nightmarish college revelry. As a result, it’s a much more light-hearted film, and has the atmosphere of something a lot more simple and pleasant than many irritatingly boisterous college movies like American Pie.

    However, when it comes to changing up the formula of a college movie in the way that Back To School does – to a degree – Life Of The Party doesn’t really do much. Just having a middle-aged woman attending university doesn’t immediately make everything funnier, and throughout the film, Melissa McCarthy’s character is effectively turned into just another one of the young folks, with little in the way of a different approach to the world being more experienced.

    Back To School takes the exact opposite approach to the premise, with Rodney Dangerfield sticking out like a real sore thumb in his time at university, whereas the way that Melissa McCarthy is accepted and integrated into normal college society means that Life Of The Party feels almost exactly the same as any generic college movie, and that’s what ultimately makes it a rather dull film.

    I can’t fault the energy of McCarthy’s performance, and she’s a thoroughly likable lead throughout, while Maya Rudolph turns up with yet another characteristically energetic supporting performance, although the rest of the cast – particularly the younger actors and actresses – aren’t particularly inspiring, and there are no characters that stand out at all apart from McCarthy and Rudolph.

    Overall, I wasn’t overly impressed with Life Of The Party. While it does well to avoid irritating, juvenile college revelry, as well as featuring the odd good laugh, it’s a generally underwhelming and disappointingly generic college movie, failing to capitalise on a fun premise and instead taking a rather predictable and dull route throughout, and that’s why I’m giving it a 6.1.

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    The Mad Movie Man
    • Website
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    The Mad Movie Man, AKA Anthony Cullen, writes articles and reviews about movies and the world of cinema. Since January 1st, 2013, he has watched and reviewed a movie every day. This is the blog dedicated to the project: www.madmovieman.com

    Related Posts

    7.1

    3627. I Believe In Miracles (2015)

    5.8

    3626. The Man With One Red Shoe (1985)

    7.9

    3625. Ode To Joy (2019)

    Follow Me Online!
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Tumblr
    New Releases
    5.3
    January 17, 2022

    3620. Friendzone (2021)

    7.1
    January 10, 2022

    3612. The Lost Daughter (2021)

    8.0
    January 7, 2022

    3609. Licorice Pizza (2021)

    7.2
    January 7, 2022

    3608. Lamb (2021)

    7.4
    December 30, 2021

    3599. The King’s Man (2021)

    6.3
    December 29, 2021

    3598. The Matrix Resurrections (2021)

    8.4
    December 28, 2021

    3597. West Side Story (2021)

    6.3
    December 27, 2021

    3596. Gunpowder Milkshake (2021)

    Recommended Movies
    8.2
    Review
    March 1, 20150

    874. Primal Fear (1996)

    8.0
    Review
    October 17, 20210

    3517. Belle (竜とそばかすの姫)(2021)

    8.4
    Review
    February 6, 20170

    1648. The Edge Of Seventeen (2016)

    9.0
    Review
    August 8, 20160

    1445. The Little Prince (2015)

    8.0
    Review
    January 30, 20210

    3237. Cold Mountain (2003)

    Popular Posts
    7.1
    January 24, 2022

    3627. I Believe In Miracles (2015)

    5.8
    January 23, 2022

    3626. The Man With One Red Shoe (1985)

    7.9
    January 22, 2022

    3625. Ode To Joy (2019)

    7.4
    January 21, 2022

    3624. One Chance (2013)

    6.3
    January 20, 2022

    3623. Falling For Figaro (2020)

    7.5
    January 19, 2022

    3622. The Polka King (2017)

    6.0
    January 18, 2022

    3621. Spies In Disguise (2019)

    © 2022 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.