Melissa McCarthy’s latest vehicle is not one of her finest. It it can’t even come close to the hilarity of, say, Spy or St. Vincent or Bridesmaids. Still, I’ll take McCarthy on her worst day over Eddie Murphy or Adam Sandler on their most recent best. Sure, I’m inclined to be extremely supportive of  my sisters in cinema — especially when they’re not size 2. But there’s something about McCarthy that I always find funny and fresh, even if the vehicle she’s driving is a clunker.

The problem with the film is that co-writer/director Ben Falcone, who also happens to be McCarthy’s husband, doesn’t give the rest of the cast enough to do. Kristen Bell, Kathy Bates, Peter Dinklage, Margo Martindale, Kristen Schaal and Cicely Strong are all very talented comedic actors, if given a decent script a good opportunity to riff. The latter, Cicely Strong, is especially wasted as a would-be bad boss to Kristen Bell’s beleaguered office drone. The SNL cast member who always gets the biggest laughs and the best parts on Saturday night is saddled with an amorphous character sans sharp schtick. She’s neither evil nor funny nor evilly funny. She is merely there, in a cheap blazer.

On the other hand, McCarthy’s character dazzles from start to finish, a fiery redhead swathed in jewels and coppery satin for her lavish motivational speaking rally, a jailbird draped in creamy cashmere for a prison tennis match. The riches to rags to… storyline slides along pleasantly enough, but the big action scenes, including a girl scout throw down and an unhinged sword fight seem to flail about for far too long, with none too satisfying outcomes.

Just about everything, with the exception of McCarthy, could have been bigger, tighter, funnier, better. Still, if I was in need of a married lady’s night out, I’d go see it again. It’s probably even better with libations.

Rated R

1 Hour 39 Minutes

Get times and tickets at Fandango.com.

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