There are moments as a film critic I almost feel embarrassed for what I am about to say and for what I am going to admit. Writing the review for The House Bunny is one of those moments. Why? Because, even thought the movie is a piece of sensationalistic and highly simplistic crap; even though it is glossy and superficial and contradicts the very points about personal empowerment and self-confidence it longs to make, even though every fiber of my being screams at me to tell people to stay away; I’m going to give it a recommendation anyways. 

Anna Faris steals hearts an generates laughs in Sony Pictures' The House Bunny

The things is, what some would call a momentary lapse of judgment I call being completely knocked out by an actress who has, for quite some time now, deserved much, much better. Blonde bombshell comedienne Anna Faris has been the real-deal ever since she burst onto the scene in Scary Movie, and while just about everything she’s ever appeared in (save probably Lost in Translation, May and Brokeback Mountain) has been a piece of crap trying to say anything bad about her (other then comments in regards to her apparent lack of taste) has been just about impossible.

While I can’t say her taste has improved, with The House Bunny the actress finally gets the opportunity to take things to the next level with a star-making performance I couldn’t help but fall desperately in love with. This girl has it all. She’s quirky, original, sexy and spectacularly endearing. More than that, she’s willing to do just about whatever it takes to get a laugh, and much like a modern day Judy Holliday taking your eyes off the actress is pretty close to a bona fide impossibility.

Don’t get me wrong. The House Bunny is a 100-minute pile of picture-perfect pinkish-colored poop. Writers Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith dip back into their Legally Blonde well for a movie that’s for all intents and purposes nothing more than a remake. Former Playboy Bunny Shelley Darlingson (Faris) is more Elle Woods than Kimba Wood, and a single episode of “The Girls Next Door” actually has more character (and more intelligence) in expertly manicured fingertip then this college-bound comedy has in its

entirety.

The thing is, any movie that can make me laugh out loud I have to give at least passing respect to. Any one that can make me laugh so hard I actually start to cry I have to do more than that. One that makes me do it three solid times? Well, that comedy I actually have to begrudgingly recommend, even if the writing and directing (Fred Wolf was the writer of Without a Paddle and at the helm of Strange Wilderness, what more is there to say then that?) are so far below par I almost don’t even know where to begin.

Let me make this simple. Faris is incredible. She elevates the film out of its doldrums and its idiotic familiarity and takes it to a place that’s almost worthwhile. She is a light in the almost oppressive darkness, so willing to say or do anything it takes to earn a laugh you can’t help but admire her spunk. She makes Shelley an instantly memorable character worth chuckling about and reminiscing over long after the movie has ended. I absolutely loved her in this, and even if the rest of The House Bunny is an irredeemable piece of s**t I’d still tell people to go and see it just because of her. 

How’s that for embarrassing? 

Film Rating: êê1/2 (out of 4)

Additional Links

-  The House Bunny Theatrical Trailer