Film Review: BARB AND STAR GO TO VISTA DEL MAR (2021): A Hysterical, Entertaining New Comedy

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar Review

Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar (2020) Film Review, a movie directed by Josh Greenbaum and starring Kristen Wiig, Annie Mumolo, Reyn Doi, Damon Wayans Jr., Vanessa Bayer and Jamie Dornan.

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, the brilliant new comedy directed by Josh Greenbaum, is an absolutely delightful good time.

Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, who wrote Bridesmaids, are back in action as they play the title characters, two middle-aged Midwestern women who soon find themselves on their way to the fictional Florida town of Vista Del Mar.

Mumolo plays Barb and the always reliable Wiig is Star. They both work together in a furniture store when we first meet them. When a couple of customers want to buy the couch they are sitting on, Barb and Star right away declare the couch “the floor model” and say it’s not for sale. It’s where they happily spend their days playing off each other’s (silly to us) dialogue. However, the bad news is they are about to be “let go” from their jobs because the furniture store is closing. In a hysterical scene shortly thereafter, the head of the social group they attend Debbie (the fantastic Vanessa Bayer) shows off her colorful new socks just before asking everyone in the group to talk about their jobs. Barb and Star lie about what a great day they had before admitting the truth–that they lost their jobs.

In short order, Barb and Star decide they need a break and want to go to Vista Del Mar. When they arrive, they are happily introduced to a great resort before learning they’re really set up in a less glamorous motel. They meet Edgar (hunk Jamie Dornan of Fifty Shades of Grey), a guy who has a secret agenda, and this makes for a hysterical dance sequence set to a rocking beat of Celine Dion’s infamous “My Heart Will Go On” from Titanic.

Kristen Wiig plays another role as a villain who has no friends and wants to fulfill her own evil plan and there’s a bunch of funny scenes with child actor Reyn Doi as Yoyo who as we meet him when the film opens is throwing newspapers for a very specific purpose. These two roles are well played fun and keep the movie pumping at a great pace. Damon Wayans Jr. more than holds his own beside the wonderful cast in a smaller, but still relevant, role as a bad secret agent. Vanessa Bayer is a revelation and definitely steals the show whenever she’s on screen with her tremendous, sly screen presence.

This film is a lot of fun. It’s great watching the slightly younger stud Dornan play off the two middle aged cougars/comic geniuses (Wiig and Momolo) with great precision and timing. The movie even has a cute end credits scene set to a Pitbull rendition of “Shake Senora,” the song from “Beetlejuice” and a humorous appearance by none other than Reba McEntire as Trish, a surprise character who sports Barb and Star’s all-time favorite name.

Wiig and Momolo are truly gifted in their energetic, funny portrayals of two women who love life and must realize their dreams before it’s too late. Wiig is coming off bad reviews for Wonder Woman 1984 but her work here should easily remedy that. Momolo makes us smile with her endearing characterization and is a movie star we need to see more of. These two women are masters of the comic acting game and play off each other like two finely tuned violins filling the air with passion.

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar will leave you wanting to see a sequel the moment the film ends. If there’s any justice in the world, we won’t have to wait too long to get one.

Rating: 9/10

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