Banana Scoop

4. Bridesmaids

Judd Apatow only served as a producer to this delightful flick so his contribution was tough to measure. Regardless of Mr. Apatow’s contribution Bridesmaids was too damn good to leave off of this list. “The plot centers on Annie (Kristen Wiig), who suffers a series of misfortunes after being asked to serve as maid of honor for her best friend” (Wikipedia). I did not know what to expect going into Bridesmaids. Would it be a chickflic? Would it be characteristic of SNL gold? It was everything that was good about film. The characters were compelling and hilarious. Melissa McCarthy deserved the key to Hollywood after her great performance. Bridesmaids changed peoples expectations about female led comedies. They have the capacity to incorporate Hangover level raunchiness and comedic heights and yet remain sweet and relevant.

Filmpact: Women have the same capacity as their male star counterparts to carry an uproarious adventure. Melissa McCarthy is too legit to quit.

Favorite moments:

“If I wasn’t a cop anymore, I would still go out with a gun and shoot people.”

“I’m glad he’s single because I’m going to climb that like a tree.”

5. Heavyweights

I went way old school with the fifth flick on this list. Heavyweights is a 1995 comedic film that Judd Apatow cowrote with Steven Brill. Mr. Apatow also was a producer and actor for the film. The movie is about a fat camp for kids that gets taken over by fitness master Tony Perkis (Ben Stiller). The movie was not box office success or critic love child but it did garner a bit of a cult following. I watched this movie as a child which I think contributed to making the film a lot of fun. It was so great to see the gang of kids at the camp join forces to take down the evil camp counselors. This may or may not have been influenced by my dark YMCA day camp days but that is besides the point. Ben Stiller’s Tony Perkis is legendary. The true predecessor to Ben Stiller’s White Goodman in Dodgeball. His fitness obsession and intolerance for junk food is dynamite. The fat stereotypes get a little heavy handed but if you embrace the campy (PUN!) nature of the film it is a blast. If you have already seen heavyweights check it out again for some insanely nostalgic movie watching.

Filmpact: Judd’s first dip into the comedic waters via the blob on Camp Hope.

Favorite moments:

“Attention campers. Lunch has been cancelled due to lack of hustle. Deal with it.”

“Kids, at age 12, I weighed 319 pounds. I had bad skin, low self-esteem, and no self-respect. Now, I eat success for breakfast, with skim milk.”

Apatow Producer Highlights: Anchorman, Step Brothers, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Get Him to the Greek, Pineapple Express, Talladega Nights

Duds: Year One, You Don’t Mess with the Zohan, Wanderlust

Look forward to his new flicks coming out soon: This is Forty and Anchorman 2

Please comment your favorite Judd Apatow movie moments!

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