Review: Life Of The Party

Image courtesy of New Line Cinema.

If Ben Falcone's "Life of the Party" does one thing right, it's that the director enables his wife - Melissa McCarthy - to just do her thing, which makes the film - a less raunchy version of "Back to School" - better than it should be. The film is otherwise a mediocre comedy with a plotline that is rarely convincing.

As the film opens, sweet natured Deanna (McCarthy) and her complete ass of a husband, Dan (Matt Walsh), are dropping their daughter, Maddie (Molly Gordon), off for her senior year of college. Deanna regrets never having finished school after becoming pregnant with Maddie and Dan insisting that he focus on his career. After having dropped their daughter off, Deanna wants to discuss the couple's upcoming trip to Italy, but Dan drops a bomb on her: he wants a divorce and is in love with a cheesy female realtor.

At first, Deanna is devastated, dropping by her parents house - Jacki Weaver is pretty funny as the elderly mom who just wants to make her daughter a sandwich, by God - but then she decides to finish the degree in archaeology that she never completed. Through a turn of events that is, well, slightly ridiculous, she ends up in a college dorm with a goth roommate - is that still a thing? - and, eventually, ingratiates herself with her daughter's sorority.

One of the hardest-to-swallow elements of "Life of the Party" is how Maddie goes from being mortified that her mom is palling around with her college buddies - and sleeping with a strapping frat boy named Jack (Luke Benward) - to being her mother's greatest advocate. Don't get me wrong, Deanna is lovable and it's hard not to like her - for her love of archaeology puns alone, mind you - but the only reason that Maddie goes from being embarrassed to endorsing the idea of her mother joining her sorority is because the plot depends on it.

There are some charming moments - especially all of the scenes during which Deanna empowers the sorority sisters, some of whom lack confidence - in the film as well as one flat-out hilarious one that involves Deanna meeting Jack's mother and stepfather at a restaurant where she is dining with her hilarious bestie Christine (Maya Rudolph). But "Life of the Party" could have used more of these, rather than the ending during which a pop star of yesteryear is called in for an unnecessary cameo.

McCarthy is an energetically hilarious comedian. She was wonderful in "Bridesmaids," funny in "The Heat" and hard to dislike in nearly everything she's in. But there have been few comedies that have done her justice in a leading role as her infectiousness is difficult to contain in formulaic Hollywood comedies. In "Bridesmaids," she was a supporting role. "Spy" came the closest to adeptly channeling her energy. So, as always, McCarthy gives it her all in "Life of the Party," which is otherwise pretty forgettable.