Moms' Night Out

"Moms' Night Out" kind of failed to punch through as a comedy in this particular genre. And I can honestly say that I didn't laugh a single time throughout the entire movie.

The story is about three house wives who go out to town for a single night of time away from children, chores, house and husbands. But of course things do not turn out as planned.

Story-wise, then "Moms' Night Out" had potential, but it was just lacking comedy and funny moments, and whenever a punchline was being set up, it wasn't brought home with any type of follow-through.

As for the acting, well people were doing good enough jobs with their given roles, but they just had an uphill struggle with the script.

If you enjoy comedies, then there are far better choices available. And I would imagine that you would sit through this only if you are a fan of anyone on the cast list. I can't claim to be, and I found out about that the hard way.

"Moms' Night Out" is a less than mediocre comedy and as such I am rating it 4 out of 10 stars.

First off - I CANNOT believe that this movie rated lower than NATURAL BORN KILLERS (one of the few movies where I actually walked out of the theater). I think the critics took this movie WAY too seriously and obviously were turned off by a feel-good comedy with Christian overtones. Granted this movie is no MASTERPIECE, but it doesn't pretend to be one. It's a good CLEAN FAMILY comedy that will obviously appeal to moms most. My kids loved it and while it took some time to get rolling it builds steam to a hilarious ending which takes time to let the several elements that were building come to a resolution. As per the typical stereotype the fathers are often portrayed as inept for comedic effect. When I started watching this movie I jokingly felt like I had to turn my "man card" in to watch it. Thankfully that changed with the appearance of "Bones" (Trace Adkins). With him came the bikers, tattoo parlors, etc. Seriously, his character was played well and worked to balance out the hectic pace of the latter half of the movie. Definitely a good date or family movie. It has enough elements to please most any member of the family and keep them laughing until the very end!

I find it amusing to read the "reviews" of this film that call it peachy, unfunny with bad acting and no plot. Or the ones that think it's a movie about how moms should just stay in the home because when they don't, things go wrong. I guess you all missed the part of the film where the mom is having a rough time even at home. Give it a rest. You either like the movie, or you don't because you don't like anything that has a Christian forward message.

I'll start right out by saying that the role of Allyson played by Sarah Drew almost made us walk out of the picture after about the first fifteen minutes. Written and performed as a whining, woe-is-me character to the point where you just want to reach In and smack her, it was almost more than we could bear. What it all boiled down to was a pathetic 'mom' wallowing around in self-pity and a passel of kids desperately in need of discipline. Doesn't anyone actually look at these films before they are released and say to themselves, in this case, "This is way too irritating to sit and watch."? If not, they should. However, as it turned out, the role of Bones played by Trace Adkins was worth sticking around to see. He was terrific. In fact, he made the movie. Patricia Heaton as Sondra was also pretty good. Sean Astin was so lovable as Sam Gamgee in The Hobbit, and he's lovable this time around, too. But there really isn't much for him to work with here. All in all, it was beyond refreshing to see a picture without all the gratuitous foul language, scummy behavior and in your face sex that far too many movies throw at us anymore in place of decent writing, but this picture could also have used some better writing – and editing. Bottom line, I've seen worse movies – but I've also seen a ton of better ones.

Mom's Night Out is one of the most delightful comedies I have seen in years. It was pure joy to sit through a film that was not filled with crude, raunchy, vulgar "humor" or language. I honestly had doubts about even attending; my thoughts were "chick flick" (not a huge fan), the "dad is inept" routine (whose popularity is what led me to quit watching television comedies years ago), and how rare comedy is with faith-based films. I seldom cry or laugh at films, in theaters anyway, but I laughed out loud during much of this film. Best part? I laughed at loud because it genuinely appealed to my sense of humor. Sadly, I have been known to laugh out loud because a film is poorly written or made, but this film is simply funny.

During the past couple of days, I have read some bad reviews of the film, and I want to address those. The ones I have read have been written by people who apparently attack any film that has Christianity shown in a positive light (and Mom's Night Out is by no stretch of the imagination an evangelical film), stay at home moms (the laments by some of the reviewers about Allyson's lack of employment are a humorous read themselves), and those who actually seem to feel a need for raunchy humor and crude language. I have read a few comments about it being "sexist"; I saw couples I recognize----partners who know that marriage is not 50/50 but 100/100, and that sometimes one needs a bit more support (and it works both ways). Instead of seeing a small slice of life, these reviewers have completely defined people based on one storyline.

I remember having a 'come-apart' a couple of times when a house full of children, especially pre-schoolers, got overwhelming. That is a part of who I am, but not the complete person. Understand what I mean? So, I could completely relate to the film and various characters in it. Some parts edged toward 'screwball comedy', which I happen to love, but sometimes you need to suspend belief for a while. So, take a break, relax, and enjoy!