LIFE OF THE PARTY

US, 2018, 105 minutes, Colour.
Melissa Mc Carthy, Maya Rudolph, Gillian Jacobs, Debby Ryan, Adria Arjona, Julie Bowen, Stephen Root, Luke Benward, Molly Gordon, Jacki Weaver, Falcone, Christina Aguilera.
Directed by Ben Falcone.

Probably, it all depends on how an audience takes to the comedy of Melissa Mc Carthy. She achieved some success on television but then moved to the movies with even greater success. She is a somewhat larger-than-life personality, even louder than life! She has combined with a number of actors, like Sandra Bullock in Heat, often providing a kind of Laurel and Hardy partnership with comic touches.

She sometimes acts with her husband, Ben Falcone, who has cowritten the screenplay with his wife, directs and has a nice cameo as a sympathetic Uber driver.

In a way, in Life of the Party, as Deanna, she is on her own. She does have Maya Rudolph as Christine, a bluntly-spoken best friend, Molly Gordon has her daughter at college, and is supported by a range of her daughter’s friends. Stephen Root turns up as her father in several sequences and, yes, that is Jacki Weaver as her mother.

This is a film of changing moods. It is also a women’s film in the sense that yes, there are some men in the cast, one particularly obnoxious (Deanna’s husband), one agreeable and charming (in love with or, infatuated, with Deanna) and a couple of husbands more or less in the background. The invitation is for women of all ages to identify with these characters, the comedy, and sadness and its consequences, the precipitation of a midlife crisis so unexpectedly.

While seeing her daughter off for the year at college, full of exuberant joy, she is bluntly told her husband that he wants to divorce her. Cataclysm in an instant. Her parents are sympathetic but her mother keeps insisting that she should make her a sandwich! She vents her feelings with hard played racquetball with her friend Christin. And then she decides to enrol in college to complete the degree in archaeology that she abandoned, on the advice of her husband, over 20 years earlier.

Then the film turns into one of those frat party comedies, raucous parties, obnoxious young girls who feel superior to everyone else, the strange group of her daughter’s friends and her getting on so well with them. Her daughter comes to terms with her mother being at college, the same college, but changes her make up, her hairstyle, her clothes. And then Deanna goes extrovert off the page, drinking, dancing, a one night stand with the nice young man, then trying to break it to him that they should break off but, in the library, not succeeding.

But there are some bitter moments, comic for the audience but not for the participants when they go before an official to discuss questions of division of property – with the rule that they must address the arbitrator rather than their opposites at the table, and the poor woman officiating experiencing all the barbs and angers.

It doesn’t seem to be in character at one stage when Deanna gets up to make her presentation for her course and becomes awkward, tongue-tied, sweaty, desperately in need of a glass of water, collapsing on the floor. She seemed to be too extrovertedly hardy for this to happen to her!

There is still one more let-go mayhem scene, smashing chaos let loose at her ex-husband’s wedding reception, to go before the end. No, not quite, the girls decide to raise money for Deanna’s course completion, which her parents are prepared to pay for, but the idea is to have a party to end all parties. Bad luck, that is the night when Christina Aguilera is performing with everybody going to the concert. Brainwave, advertise that Christina will turn up to the party. Will she? Won’t she? We all know that she will – but there is an amusing reason why she does come.

Graduations, happy together, power to the women!


1. Melissa Mc Carthy film? Story, cowriting? Writing with her husband, the director?

2. The title, a film about an extrovert, the background of her life, marriage, pregnancy, giving up studies, raising her daughter? Ordinary situation?

3. The college, To cater, the town, homes, the sorority buildings, lecture rooms, shared rooms, parties, atmosphere? Musical score and songs?

4. The opening, the daughter going to college, pride, love, in the car, Dan and his blunt treatment of his daughter, the information, the other upset, getting out of the car? Her life suddenly changed?

5. Visiting her parents, her mother urging her to have sandwiches? Going to see Christine, the fears racquetball competition, upset, listening to the husband sitting back and talking?

6. The divorce, Dan and his marrying Marcy, her being a real estate agent, trying to settle the property divisions, the woman presiding, everybody talking to her and that the others? Christina present and doing the law thing for Deanna?

7. Deanna enrolling, continuing archaeology, her daughter’s initial reaction? Meeting the friends, the different personalities, her bringing snacks, always being friendly? Her room, the quiet and eccentric roommate?

8. The classes, pushing in, knowing the lecturer, studying the archaeology? The nasty girls behind her? Are getting good marks, the farce of her trying to present, the desk, drop her papers, sweating, cold water, fainting?

9. The range of girlfriends, the girl in a coma, the one asking permission to talk, the bond with the owner’s daughter?

10. Taking piano out to the party, her daughter transforming her maker, his style, clothes? After Deanna going back into the past and buying the sweatshirt and souvenirs of college? Going to the party, the drinks, her daughter’s boyfriend, meeting John? The attraction? Dancing, getting high? The night with him? Wanting the break, his coming to the library, the sex and the bookshelves?

11. The restaurant, with Christine and her husband, the other guests? Marcy and then coming in? The ironic shock the John was Marcy’s son?

12. The plans for the wedding, the group eating chocolates, but getting high on the bark with the marijuana? Going to the reception, the offending notices about the marriage, smashing everything, the mayhem, Dan confronting her, cutting off all the money?

13. The decision, to leave, being persuaded to stay to study?

14. The idea for the party, raising the money, promising Christina and Valero, the crowds coming, getting the money? Her parents offering to pay?

15. Her successful presentation, the acclaim? Her graduation, with her daughter?

16. Power to women!