This is another one of those crass, rude and lewd comedies which I do not care for very much. Its strongest asset is that it is female-centric, led by believable, empathetic female characters, with a story that eventually leads to empowerment — even as it flaunts stereotypes, bad behavior and crudity.

Miguel Arteta’s film has Mia (Tiffany Haddish) and Mel (Rose Byrne) as friends who develop a beauty company together, but are struggling to succeed. Enter Claire Luna (Salma Hayek), the voluptuous owner of a hugely popular beauty brand and wants to showcase Mia and Mel as part of her empire. Or so she says. Their friendship is sorely tested when the quest for profits force them to turn against their own employees and each other.

At its heart, the film is a paean to friendship, sticking together against all odds and doing things one’s own way. But to get there we are subjected to all sorts of innuendo, sex talk, ridiculous hijinks, bad jokes and silliness. Haddish and Byrne are terrific together, and Billy Porter and Jennifer Coolidge lend nice support, but I felt a little bad for Salma Hayek, who seems to be slumming in this kind of comedy. And this is comedy that is not very clever or funny.

The film definitely has something to say, but it does so in the most annoying way possible. My take is that if these women acted as they do in the real world of business nobody would do business with them. Perhaps that is part of its appeal — that women who “break the rules” are more fun to watch and root for. Maybe so, but methinks they share too much about their sex lives and private parts while putting down other women and smoking too much dope. ☆ ☆. 20 January 2020.