I'm the first to admit that Melissa McCarthy was hilarious in Bridesmaids, but by this point the crude, loud shtick is wearing just the tiniest bit thin. It seemed like the only purpose of the film was for her to act violently aggressive in a way that would absolutely get her fired. Other than that, there's not a whole hell of a lot of plot going around. But the worst part is that The Heat completely underutilizes Sandra Bullock. She's a hilarious woman, and she's stuck being the uptight neurotic Fed. If McCarthy had expressed some restraint, they both would have been funny and neither would have come off as over the top. In addition, I'm really uncomfortable with some of the misogynistic undertones that plague this movie. It sometimes seems like the whole punchline of the film is, "Haha, it's a buddy cop movie...WITH WOMEN!" I hate that Sandra Bullock's character is a pariah within her department, seemingly just for the heinous crime of being passionate, dedicated, and a little overbearing. In male cop films, these types of characters are presented, but it usually isn't implied that they're bad people or worthy of being censured by their colleagues.
Audrey Fox is an ex-film student, which means that she prefers to spend her days in the dark, watching movies and pondering the director's use of diegetic sound. She currently works as an entertainment writer, joyfully rambling about all things film and television related. Add her on Twitter at @audonamission and check out her film blog at 1001moviesandbeyond.com.
