Movie Review – A Bad Moms Christmas

It’s been a year since these moms met in Bad Moms (2016). They reunite for the holidays in A Bad Moms Christmas this November. As was in the first film, Amy (Mila Kunis) narrates their story. This time, Amy opens the film seen sitting amongst a post-holiday-decoration disaster, reflecting on what led her to this moment. For the sequel, they borrow concepts used in the film Meet the Fockers (2004), and the Christmas classic National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)…the parents of these women decide to visit for the holiday. Or, at least the three mothers and a father arrive. Amy’s mother, played by Christine Baranski, is overbearing and insists that Amy has not done enough decorating and preparing for the holidays. Peter Gallagher plays Amy’s father, who seldom speaks and is always submissive to Amy’s mother, until the moment it is time to offer fatherly advice to Amy. Jessie (Jay Hernandez), Amy’s love interest from the first film, is now visiting Amy more often with his daughter in tow. Kiki (Kristen Bell) maintains her functioning family until her mother, played by Cheryl Hines, arrives to cling, observe, smother, and critique every moment of her marriage. Carla’s (Kathryn Hahn) mother, played by Susan Sarandon, is dropped off by a truck driver, and it becomes clear that she has been a drifter for some time, only visiting Carla when she has needed a loan. Wanda Sykes returns as Dr. Karl, and at one point during the film Carla meets an exotic male dancer named Ty (Justin Hartley).

Conveniently, all the mothers decide to visit their daughters at the same time – Christmas 2017. Of course, films like these cannot exist without the characters experiencing their individualized issues simultaneously. The film follows the same pattern as its predecessor: The trio (Amy, Kiki, and Carla) again express how over-burdened and under-appreciated they are, they get dumped on, they gather to vent and rebel, the rebelling causes more complications between characters, the bottom drops out, and then they find ways to repair their relationships (and save Christmas). Despite its similarities to the first film, the comedic elements in this holiday sequel are unique, hilarious, and festive.

A Bad Moms Christmas is a “safe” film, which is not a bad thing. It feels similar to the first film, in terms of overall entertainment value. In other words, if you enjoyed the original film, it is likely you will enjoy this one too.

A Bad Moms Christmas is not a family film and should not be viewed by children. Characters have discussions involving genitalia, and there are more ‘f-bombs’ dropped than the number of partridges that can be squeezed into a pear tree. Still, this film has the means of becoming another modern holiday classic. There is always room for hilarity and holiday tomfoolery – I say get out, go see it, and be merry!