Review: Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar

Barb & Star is a blast, chop-full of silly gags and side-turning jokes. Actors Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig's comedic force reign superior. A colorful and cheerful experience.

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Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar is a joyous film to watch throughout. I fully enjoyed its light humor and silly sense of narrative structure. I laughed a lot, bringing me a healing dose of fun. From the moment you see Yoyo (a wonderful Reyn Doi) riding down the street on his bike singing Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb's "Guilty," I knew I was in for a treat. Meet Barb (a hilarious Annie Mumolo) and Star (a side-splitting Kristen Wiig), two middle-aged gals who decide to embark on the adventure of a lifetime, leaving their small Midwestern town behind for the first time ever. Their vacation leads them to sunny Vista Del Mar, Florida. Barb is a widow, and Star feels abandoned by her husband's infidelity years ago. Yet, the two are more afraid of losing the "shimmer" that made their lives so joyful.

Meanwhile, we get an eccentric villain named Sharon Gordon Fisherman (also Wiig) and her henchman, Edgar (a lively Jamie Dornan), plotting to destroy Vista Del Mar. Will Sharon succeed with her evil plan? Will Edgar follow through, or will he fall in love with Star and her colorful culottes? You'll have to find out and watch this wonderful movie full of silly jokes and goofy moods from our fluffy-haired heroines. We are even blessed to have two musical numbers, one including Dornan running around the beach, singing to seagulls, and flicking his feet in the sand. "Edgar's Prayer" is incredibly amusing, while the titanic techno-dance sequence had me rolling. Even as the movie becomes more absurd, the jokes keep coming and will fill you up with joy. Barb & Star is a funny film that slapped a smile on my face, and after such a tough year, I needed a good laugh. So, pack your bags and join Barb and Star for a trip of a lifetime. Who knows, you might even meet Trish on the way.

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar is rated PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned) For crude sexual content | drug use | some strong language.

Directed by Josh Greenbaum

Starring Kristen Wiig, Annie Mumolo, Jamie Dornan, Damon Wayans Jr., Fortune Feimster, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Rose Abdoo, Vanessa Bayer, Phyllis Smith, Kwame Patterson, and Reyn Doi as Yoyo.