Tammy – Review by Frances Winston

Directed by: Ben Falcone

Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Susan Sarandon, Allison Janney, Toni Collette, Sandra Oh, Dan Aykroyd, Kathy Bates

In cinemas July 4th

The last time Susan Sarandon appeared in a road movie it was the phenomenally successful Thelma & Louise which put girl power on the map long before the Spice Girls were a twinkle in some record producer’s eye. No doubt Melissa McCarthy had this in mind when she cast her in this offering which sees the larger than life star play the eponymous lead role while also acting as co-writer and co-producer as her husband undertakes director duties. All in all this was a real family affair for her.

The story is nothing new. In the bad day to end all bad days Tammy wrecks her car, gets fired from her minimum wage job in a burger joint and discovers her husband cheating on her. Needing to get away but broke she decides to hook up with her grandmother Pearl (Sarandon) who has some cash and has always wanted to see Niagara Falls so the pair take to the road. Along the way there are misunderstandings, high jinks and bonding moments.

McCarthy basically revisits her Identity Thief role here – the loud, brash, overweight misunderstood outcast. This does start to get tiresome though. She has shown that she has a good acting range in other jobs but here it is as if she determines to be as loud and vulgar as possible which is rapidly becoming her screen persona. She works well with Sarandon though who seems to relish playing a dowdier role than usual (for the record at 67 to McCarthy’s 43 she is realistically far too young to play her grandmother!) and kudos to her for “aging up” for the role. Kathy Bates as Pearl’s cousin Leonore is also great and it is clear the two veteran actresses had a blast working together. With a predominately female cast this is also doing its bit to infiltrate the male dominated world of comedy flicks.

This is pretty standard fare that isn’t going to leave any great mark on the comedy landscape but is an amusing enough way to kill a couple of hours. It has hit and miss moments but will still entertain and should find a few fans.