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"BRIDE WARS" (2009) (Kate Hudson, Anne Hathaway) (PG) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Heavy None *Moderate None Minor Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Mild None None Mild Moderate Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Heavy None Mild Moderate Minor QUICK TAKE: Comedy: Two women, best friends since childhood, become competitive adversaries when their weddings end up scheduled on the same day at the same place and neither offers to change their plans. PLOT: Ever since being entranced by young girls attending a wedding at New York City's Plaza Hotel, Liv (KATE HUDSON) and Emma (ANNE HATHAWAY) have dreamed of having their respective big days there on a Saturday in June. While middle school teacher Emma is something of a pushover -- always allowing coworker Deb (KRISTEN JOHNSTON) to get her to cover for her -- and thus patiently awaits live-in boyfriend Fletcher (CHRIS PRATT) to propose, lawyer Liv is more direct with her boyfriend, Daniel (STEVE HOWEY), demanding an engagement. That's especially true after Emma ends up engaged first, with Liv then joining her, and the two waste no time in meeting with legendary wedding planner Marion St. Claire (CANDICE BERGEN). The two young women are ecstatic and plan to be each other's maid of honor, but a snafu results in both being scheduled for the lone opening at the Plaza for a June wedding. And from there, their friendship devolves into a competitive affair where both strive to grab that date and sabotage the other's nuptials. Accordingly, they need to find new matrons of honor, but have a hard time doing so, with Emma reluctantly asking Deb to be hers. Since Liv's brother, Nate (BRYAN GREENBERG), will be giving her away, she's stuck with asking her personal assistant at work, Kevin (MICHAEL ARDEN), to do the duties. With their big day quickly approaching, the two women pull out all of the stops to try to undermine the other's wedding. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? If they're fans of anyone in the cast or are into wedding-related movies, they just might. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG For suggestive content, language and some rude behavior. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: KATE HUDSON plays a type-A lawyer who's always dreamed of a June wedding at the Plaza, and thus allows that requirement to get in the way of her longtime friendship with Emma when their weddings accidentally are scheduled on the same day. She then sets out to sabotage and undermine Emma's nuptials any way she can. She drinks some. ANNE HATHAWAY plays her best friend since childhood, a middle school teacher and general pushover who finally finds her resolve in trying to do the same back to Liv regarding her wedding. She uses some profanity, drinks, and does some sexualized dancing with male dancers at a strip club. KRISTEN JOHNSTON plays Emma's self-centered and oft-divorced coworker who's always passing off her work to Emma and isn't a good maid of honor for her. CANDICE BERGEN plays the highly sought after wedding planner who must contend with the aftermath of the two women's weddings accidentally being scheduled on the same day. STEVE HOWEY plays Liv's live-in boyfriend who must contend with her general pushiness in getting what she wants. CHRIS PRATT plays Emma's live-in fiancé who must deal with her change in behavior regarding competing with and trying to sabotage Liv. MICHAEL ARDEN plays Liv's personal assistant at work who she taps to be her mister of honor for her wedding when she can't find anyone else for the role. He tries to keep her on the straight and narrow, but has a hard time doing so. BRYAN GREENBERG plays Liv's brother who's going to give her away at the wedding, but obviously has a thing for Emma. He briefly drinks. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this PG-rated comedy. Profanity consists of 1 modified "f" word (said as "Mother-F"), while other expletives and colorful phrases are also uttered. Sexually related dialogue is present, while a woman dances suggestively with some scantily clad male strippers, and varying amounts of cleavage are present. There's a tiny bit of comedy-based violence, while drinking and related material occurs in various scenes, with some intoxication as a result. Bad attitudes are present, but most are played for comedy, while some behavior might be enticing for kids to imitate, and some tense family material is present. Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Liv and Emma have champagne at a wedding reception as do others, while their boyfriends hold beer. When the bride goes to throw the bouquet, she appears a bit tipsy. Liv orders tequila shots for herself, Emma and their friends, and we see them having shots and drinks. Nate also stops by and has a shot. Emma and Fletcher have beer. Upon hearing that Emma is engaged, her friends react in varying forms of despair, including one hurriedly grabbing for some prescription pills in her medicine cabinet. Emma has champagne, and Marion's assistant says she'll get more for her and Liv. The women's boyfriends have beer, and then again in a later scene. One of the women's friends has wine. Various women have wine at a wedding shower. Deb and Emma have wine, and we see various bottles of wine on a table, presumably for testing for the wedding dinner and/or reception. Liv, her friends, and others have drinks at a male strip club. After Emma crashes the party and upstages her, Liv has a shot of liquor, then another and another, and we then see many empty shot glasses (resulting in her oversleeping the next morning and asking for some headache relief). Deb has champagne. When discussing whose wedding to attend, the women's friends say they'll go to Liv's as Emma's reception will have more booze, with one saying she's going to check out the hot drunk guys. Kevin tells Liv that Marion stated she could have one nip before the wedding, and offers up three mini bottles of booze. Nate grabs one, and Liv says she'll have the tequila, but then remembers something and doesn't have any. Liv replaces Emma's wedding ceremony montage video with one showing Emma being intoxicated and uninhibited from years ago, including footage of her holding some guy's head to her chest, and dancing around in a bikini top. There's drinking at a wedding reception, including Deb straight from a champagne bottle. Liv asks Emma if they should toast the latter now being married, but Emma says she isn't drinking, with Liv saying she isn't either (due to both being pregnant). BLOOD/GORE None. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Much of the following is played for comedy. The two women allow the scheduling snafu and their respective unwavering resolve to have a June wedding at the Plaza to undermine their friendship. This results in bad attitudes between them, including various efforts to undermine and sabotage the other's big day (some of which are listed below). A somewhat intoxicated bride makes a disparaging remark about Emma's dress being old. Deb is self-centered and often gets Emma to do her work for her. Rather than wait for him to propose (knowing he already has the ring), Liv directly confronts Daniel about asking her. Emma and Liv confront and surround another bride, trying to convince her to move her wedding date (she refuses). Liv tells Emma, "Your wedding better watch it" and "Your wedding can suck it," while Emma tells Liv the latter's wedding will be huge, "Just like your ass at prom." About Liv, Deb says, "She's kind of an ex-heifer." To try to make her too fat to fit into her designer wedding dress, Emma secretly sends chocolate and other treats to Liv (with the latter thinking they're from Daniel). Liv delays Emma's real dance instructor from arriving and sends another who wears her and Fletcher out through vigorous routines. Fletcher says he feels sorry for Daniel in that the latter won't be able to control his wife. Emma places a dual wedding announcement in their hometown paper, with her childhood picture being pretty, while Liv's shows her as a geeky and awkward looking girl. Liv starts the rumor that Emma is pregnant and thus her need for that particular wedding date. Liv secretly changes the color of Emma's spray-on tan, thus leaving Emma orange in appearance. In retaliation, Emma secretly changes Liv's hair coloring, thus leaving her with blue hair. Some tension arises between Emma and Fletcher about the former's change in behavior and the latter wanting her to be the person she was years ago. Liv replaces Emma's wedding ceremony montage video with one showing Emma being intoxicated and uninhibited from years ago, including footage of her holding some guy's head to her chest, and dancing around in a bikini top. FRIGHTENING SCENES None. GUNS/WEAPONS We briefly see footage from a first-person shooter video game (just gunfire, no one is hit). IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "Mother-F" (said just like that), "Shut up," "I love bring your hot girlfriend to work day," "No way, that's incredible," "Whatever," "It would be a hell of a party," "Pretty frickin' tired of it," "Freaking," "Your wedding better watch it," "You wedding can suck it," "Your wedding will be huge, just like your ass at prom," "Nuts" (crazy), "That bitch," "She's kind of an ex-heifer," "Damn, she's competitive," "Ms. Wang's a stern mistress," "What the hell /is going on/are you doing?" "You look like a traffic cone," "You're under arrest for being too sexy," "Time to be frisked," "Screw up" (verb), "You're like a very tall, very hot Smurf," "Bitchy," "She's so weird" and "Have you lost your mind?" Some/all of the various forms of sabotage (some of which is listed under "Bad Attitudes") might be enticing for some kids to imitate or come up with forms of their own. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) None. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) Songs heard in a male strip club include lyrics of "I'm too sexy for..." and "Give it to me baby." Other songs had lyrics that couldn't fully be heard and/or understood, thus presenting the possibility of them potentially containing something objectionable. PROFANITY At least 1 modified "f" word (said as "Mother-F"), 3 hells, 2 damns, 1 ass, 28 uses of "Oh my God," 4 of "God," 3 of "Oh God" and 1 use each of "G-damn" and "My God." SEX/NUDITY Emma shows some cleavage. We see part of Liv's bare belly as she lies on the couch and her top rides up a bit. After Daniel proposes to her, Liv jumps up and wraps her legs around him (clothed). As a result, one of his coworkers states, "I love bring your hot girlfriend to work day." Emma shows some cleavage. We see miscellaneous cleavage. Emma shows some cleavage. Trying to find a new maid of honor, Liv talks on the phone to some woman, stating that she didn't sleep with some guy, but then admits that yes she did once. She then amends that to twice, but says he was lousy before realizing that other woman later married that guy. Liv delays Emma's real dance instructor from arriving and sends another who wears her and Fletcher out through vigorous routines, all as that man tells them, "I bring you rhythm, I bring you sex." One of the women's friends shows cleavage. Liv starts the rumor that Emma is pregnant and thus her need for that particular wedding date. We see Liv in her bra as she gets out of her wedding dress. We see miscellaneous cleavage. We see Emma's bare back as she enters a spray-on tanning booth. Liv, her friends, and others have drinks at a male strip club where various buff men dance and strut about while scantly clothed. Emma then crashes this party, sexily dressed in a jacket and small/tight shorts, and does her own sexy dancing with these men. One is dressed like a cop and tells her she's under arrest for being too sexy and that it's time to be frisked. She does more such provocative dancing, including jumping out and swinging on a rope on the stage, spreading her legs, and slapping her own clothed butt, all as songs in the club include lyrics of "I'm too sexy for..." and "Give it to me baby." Having overslept and hurried to get to a meeting, we see Liv in a suit, but without a blouse underneath, thus exposing part of her bra. About her hair now being blue, Daniel tells Liv, "You're like a very tall, very hot Smurf." When she admits that she's trying to change and not be so driven, he jokes that he always wanted a human wife, adding that the others are too hard to inflate. Liv shows some cleavage in her low-cut, strapless wedding dress. Deb shows some cleavage. Liv replaces Emma's wedding ceremony montage video with one showing Emma being intoxicated and uninhibited from years ago, including footage of her holding some guy's head to her chest, and dancing around in a bikini top. We see miscellaneous cleavage. One of the women's friends enthusiastically kisses Kevin at a wedding reception. SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES Emma states that Deb has been divorced three times. We hear that Liv and Nate's parents are dead and thus won't be able to share Liv's big day with her. One of the women's friends is bitter about her own marriage, and at the end of the film, we hear that she's now divorced. Some tension arises between Emma and Fletcher about the former's change in behavior and the latter wanting her to be the person she was years ago. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Weddings and how they can cause stress for those involved. The comment that a wedding is the biggest day in a girl's life. Marion states that women are dead until they get married. Liv and Emma letting their dreams and demands for a picture-perfect wedding get in the way of their friendship. VIOLENCE When Emma and Liv confront and surround another bride, trying to convince her to move her wedding date, that woman pushes Emma aside so that she can escape (played for comedy). As a result of more sabotage during her ceremony, Emma leaves hers, rushes into Liv's and tackles her to the floor. The two then tussle there until they're exhausted (played for comedy). Reviewed January 6, 2009 / Posted January 9, 2009

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