Movie Review - You Again

You Again (2010)

Starring Kristen Bell, Odette Yustman, Jamie Lee Curtis, Sigourney Weaver, Victor Garber, Kristin Chenoweth, and Betty White

Directed by Andy Flickman

You Again has me in a bit of a conundrum.  I laughed much more than I thought I would watching this PG-rated comedy, but there are also uncomfortable stretches of time where the comedic pacing falls incredibly flat making this 105-minute film feel a whole lot longer than it actually is.  Parts of this movie push me to rate it higher than a 'C'; other parts are pulling me to rate it lower than a 'C.'  In this tug of war, there isn't really a winner and You Again simply falls into the middle.

In an appealing performance, Kristen Bell stars as Marni, a twenty-something gal who returns home for her brother Will's (James Wolk) wedding.  Upon arrival, Marni meets Will's fiancé Joanna (Odette Yustman) who just so happens to be the bitchy cheerleader who made Marni's life hell in high school.  While Joanna appears to be a completely different person now, she acts as if she's never met Marni which irritates the former "nerd" to no end.  Couple all that with the fact that Marni and Will's mom, Gail (Jamie Lee Curtis), and Joanna's aunt Ramona (Sigourney Weaver) were also former friends turned high school rivals and hilarity is meant to ensure.

And, like I said, humor does arise from moments, but there are times where much of the attempted laughter just doesn't work.  In particular, Betty White as Marni and Will's grandmother and Kristin Chenoweth as the wedding planner were seemingly thrown into the mix as afterthoughts to try and showcase the two actresses' talents rather than creating actual meaningful characters...and it unfortunately shows.  It's not quite a fault of White or Chenoweth, but there's just no real reason for either lady to be in the film.

Kristin Bell, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Sigourney Weaver are all game and it's actually really nice to see Curtis and Weaver on the screen again...it doesn't seem like their talents are showcased enough in this day and age.  Curtis, in particular, is a comedienne that's always rather pleasant to watch.  That said, in the end, even the talents of these lovely ladies can't quite elevate You Again to anything above average.

The RyMickey Rating:  C