Girls Trip has to be the surprise comedy hit of the year, going into this movie there wasn’t really much separating it from other similar comedies eg. Bridesmaids, Rough Night. But for what its worth this movie is very funny, I had a massive smile on my face for most of it and enjoyed every minute. The film follows a group of friends who get together in New Orleans to rediscover their wild side for a weekend of drinking, dancing, dick jokes and much more drinking. Directed by Malcolm D. Lee, it stars Regina Hall, Tiffany Haddish, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Queen Latifah as four very unique, defined, and hilarious personalities you can’t help but love. These four girls are absolutely hilarious from start to finish and bring an endless run of comedy as they have such a strong dynamic you believe they have a rich history together. The plot is much more straightforward and streamlined as oppose to Rough Night, another similar film that released earlier this year that didn’t know what it wanted to be. This knows exactly what it is and puts comedy before drama in almost every moment. As is in most comedies nowadays there is still that dramatic element present here but it is handled incredibly well and just works.

I need to talk about this cast because they are straight up hilarious and their back and forth chemistry provides quite a few laugh out loud moments. Ryan (Regina Hall), Dina (Tiffany Haddish), Lisa (Jada Pinkett Smith), and Sasha (Queen Latifah) are four fun and loveable characters who are all unique and you fall in love with equally in the opening minutes. Their interactions are all very fun to watch, the antics they get up to are pure entertainment, and it never gets old despite holding a 2 hour runtime. Ryan is the character who is subject to the majority of the drama of the plot but she is also great in the strictly comedic moments and that is where Regina Hall’s (Scary Movie 3) expert comedic timing comes into play. She is not as loud and expressive as the other characters but she plays her part in contrast to the others fantastically. Jada Pinkett Smith plays the overprotective mum character and despite letting loose and getting wild her character never strays from that motherly instinct which shows great character writing. Sasha played by Queen Latifah has plenty of great one liners and the loudness of her character has her naturally stand out at all times.

But the highlight is by far Dina played by the very fucking funny Tiffany Haddish. Oh my god….. every damn word this woman speaks is worth so many fucking laughs….. it’s insane. The comedic timing is so on point every single joke hit to the point where I just knew that every time she opened her mouth something hilarious would come out of it. And even when the film drops to a more serious and emotional tone her character does tone things down a little but never loses that comedic touch which defines her role.

Now the plot is great, it’s nothing too complicated, it’s a very simple and straightforward story where the comedy is the core focus of every scene and every location the characters visit. And once all the jokes that can be made in this specific location are made they move on and keep things feeling fresh. Now obviously there is an emotional and dramatic side to the plot revolving around Mike Colter‘s character that does play a part from very early in the film. And out of all the dramatic storylines integrated in comedies nowadays, this has to be one of the more successful integrations. It never takes over the plot and when it is featured in the first 2 acts of the movie it is done so lightly and in the shadow of the comedy. This is perfect because at this point you are entertained by these characters but maybe don’t care about them enough. Then as you get towards the third act it pulls out the heavy dramatic and emotional stuff and it works a lot more than I thought it would. This is due to the fact that by this point you have followed each of these personalities so much that you have grown an attachment to them and so when bad things start to happen you can’t help but be on their side.

So in the end this is one of the hottest comedies of the year featuring one of the funniest female ensembles ever put to screen. All of the performances are fantastic with the comedic timing never once missing a beat. There’s even one part in the film where something comedic happens and i’m like “ok, it’s sort of funny, but not really” and then Dina takes the joke one step further and I completely lost it making the whole scene a win. I say definitely check this out as it is a great time from start to finish without a doubt. And the musical cameos in here are an added bonus for any lover of 90’s and early 2000’s RnB.

8/10