Movie Review: Joy Ride

   

     One of my favorite formats in the comedy genre is the road trip. It’s the anything-and-everything-can-happen-thing that gets me every time. When it’s done well, I laugh until I’m crying and my stomach muscles force me to fold myself in half. Maybe it’s because I'm an 80s millennial with X and Y tendencies that makes me a sucker, but when a filmmaker injects the laughable elements of someone’s coming of age, their sexual realization/sexual freedom, the gross-out tropes of being somewhere new, and the general chaos that comes of subverting societal norms into the tickle factory, you get the attention and the laughs of an entire generation. 

By that I mean to say I feel the movie “Joy Ride” (Lionsgate Films 2023) was made specifically for me—well not me specifically... Or maybe it was. Regardless, the film, which is centered around two friends, Audrey (played by Ashley Park) and Lolo (played by Sherry Cola). That’s right folks. This is another film about women and if you don’t like it, please find the exit quietly. The people inside are far too busy celebrating progress and laughing at this wonderfully inventive homage to comedy classics such as “Superbad” (Columbia Pictures; Sony 2007) and “National Lampoon’s Vacation” (Warner Bros. 1983). Don’t call it feminist or woke. Just call it hilarious because the film “Joy Ride” is truly on par with the above must-sees and sets the bar a little higher for comedy overall. 

Can’t say enough about this film. Actually I can. The characters were unique, the actors were fresh and funny, and by the end of story I wanted to watch it again. Truly a laugh-a-minute. I f*cking loved it, which is something I haven’t said in one of these. So, to the men who are still upset about a certain doll movie, relax and check out all that new-new. You’re gonna laugh.