Play On Playboy

Fred is a fan of Anna Faris. I'm a fan of anything funny. Since we're still on the Do Whatever Fred Wants And Give Fred Whatever Fred Needs kick, Fred, Mia, and I went to see The House Bunny. It was a good way to spend her first full day home. It offered much needed laughs.

The theatre was pretty empty. Two women were behind us. We settled in and I leaned over to Mia and asked, Are those two boys? She squinted forward and nodded, yup here for the boobs. I agreed. Why else would two adolescent boys see The House Bunny? Oh, wait, maybe they're finding themselves. But really, they seemed to be there more to check out as much cleavage as possible rather than to get fashion tips.

Anna Faris is Hil. Air. Eee. Us. Here's the thing that really got me laughing. She's got this rockin hot bod and big poofy blonde extensions and a wispy high girly voice and when Shelley meets someone, she repeats his or her name with a gravelly Darth Vader voice without all the breathiness. It's so out of girly character and the timing is amamzing and it happens several times throughout the movie. Good writing. Good character quirk. Excellent comedy.

Emma Stone also appears as an unpopular nerdy sorority girl who needs to save her sorority but can come up with mixer ideas such as Bring Your Own Mouse. Her Natalie goes through the obligatory make over, as do all the girls in the house, but hers is even better because there's a boy involved. My favorite scene with Natalie: she flirts during a car wash by turning the hose on her crotch instead of her chest.

I just saw Kat Dennings in Charlie Bartlett. She was a charm there and she's a charm here as a psuedo-feminist critical gloomy misfit named Mona. Fitting.

Then there's Katherine McPhee who plays a pregnant sorority girl and can sing but thankfully she doesn't really sing until the closing credits. Pregnant women can't sing! Actually, the whole big belly thing is more of a sight gag and she never goes for pre-natal care and she suddenly disappears to have a baby towards the end. No, I'm not ruining anything for you. She's very very pregnant and you know she's going to give birth at any minute. Which makes it highly believable for her to be running around with the girls during Rush. Right.

Rumor Willis and Colin Hanks are the actor offspring here. They both hold their own. Rumor Willis is dang funny as a girl in a body brace that should have come off four years ago. Colin Hanks is the non-frat boy who helps out the old people and has an interest in Shelley for her personality rather than her legs and boobs.

Hef makes more than a few appearances as does the girlfriend trio. I'm not sure this movie could have been made without the blessing of Hef. It could have been made without all his screen time so it was funny and nice to see him acting. Favorite Hef moment: WHAT??? You have to see the movie. You'll know what I'm talking about. Mia knows. Fred knows. Best line.

Beverly D'Angelo is Beverly D'Angelo. I love her. This is the kind of movie she's good in. Again, fitting.

What kind of movie am I talking about? One with a very very loose predictable plot and chock full of over the top stereotypes. Shelley is too dumb and dim. Then there's the mannish older girl in the sorority who looks more like a quarterback than a girl. The token black girl is also the shy mute who spends most of her time in the closet, literally. Much of the Zeta sorority is akin to the Revenge of the Nerds fraternity, only with girls.

Despite the really bad plot, the movie is hysterically funny. Most of what Shelley says is golden as is the physical comedy, i.e. tripping over tables and getting gum stuck in her hair. There's a scene that mocks Forrest Gump (which I really enjoy since Colin Hanks, son of Forrest himself, is in the movie).

So if you have a friend coming home from the hospital, put The House Bunny on your list. If you don't have a friend coming home from the hospital, then I'm not sure if The House Bunny should be anywhere near your list. It depends. If you like Hef or the girls from The Girls Next Door on E! or Anna Faris or ridiculously cliched stereotypes or American Idol runner up Katherine McPhee or Tom Hanks's son, then maybe it should be on your list. If you don't like any of those things, what the hell is wrong with you? That's a whole lot of stuff to not like any of it.